HP 
5726 


Southern  Branch 
of  the 

University  of  California 

Los  Angeles 

Form  L-1 

Hf 
L5^cc 


Form  L-9-2m-7,'22 


APR  9  4  1928; 


JAN  3      1935 
APR  2  2  1935 


MAY  6     19Sf 

APR  "^ 

^m  2     194fr 


RID.        "^     • 
^^"2  3 1959 


THE    AUTOMATIC 

LETTERWRITER 

AND  DICTATION  SYSTEM 


EDITED  BY  W.  H.  LEFFINGWELL 
AUTHOR  OF  "SCIENTIFIC  OFFICE  MANAGEMENT" 


BETTER  LETTERS  AT  LOWER  COST— HOW  TO  USE  PARAGRAPHS  TO  CLOSE  SALES 
—EASIER  WAYS  FOR  ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS— HOW  TO  GET  THE  MAIL 
OUT  MORE  QUICKLY— REDUCING  OFFICE  EXPENSE  BY  AUTOMATIC     ' 
CORRESPONDENCE  ROUTINE— MECHANICAL  DEVICES  THAT 
HELP    TO    SPEED    UP    AUTOMATIC    DICTATION  — 
OPENERS  AND  CLOSERS  THAT  MAKE  PARA- 
GRAPH LETTERS  MORE  PERSONAL 


A.  W.  SHAW  COMPANY 

GO     NEW 
LONDON 


CHICAGO     NEW  YORK 
LONDON 


Copyright,  1918,  by 
W.  SHAW  COMPANY 
Printed  in  U.  S.  A. 


BRUNSWICK  &  COMPANY 

HARDWARE 
104  BROADWAY 


Chicago 
July   17.    I9IB 

C  .  W.  Shepherd, 

217  National  Avenue, 

Stanford,  Ohio. 

Dear  Sir: 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  comply  with  your  request  of  July  15. 
-V7e  are  sending  you  today  a  copy  of  our  price  list,  in  or- 
der that  it  may  reach  you  proirrptly. 

For  a  complete  description  of  the  gauge  take  a  careful 
look  through  the  circular  which  I  am  enclosing.  It  will 
help  you  to  decide  exactly  what  fits  your  needs,  and 
will  give  you  thorough  information  ahout  quality,  prices 
and  the  satisfaction  felt  by  representative  users. 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  IJth. 

I  have  seen  that  your  goods  were  carefully  packed  and 
shipped.  They  should  reach  you  now  in  two  days.  Let 
me  know  if  they  do  not  come  promptly,  or  if  you  have 
any  questions  to  ask  ahout  them.  I  am  confident  that  you 
will  be  thoroughly  satisfied  with  this  shipment.  I  am 
therefore  looking  forward  to  other  orders  from  you  in  the 
near  future.  How  may  we  serve  you  further? 

Feel  assured  that  we  always  want  to  do  everything  we  can 
to  give  our  customers  complete  satisfaction. 

We  find  on  looking  through  the  records  of  our  shipping 
department  that  the  goods  left  the  wareroom  on  the  10th. 
Therefore,  it  was  hardly  possible  for  them  to  have  reached 
you  at  the  time  you  wrote  to  us.   If,  however,  they  have 
not  arrived  by  the  time  you  receive  this  letter,  will  you 
please  let  us  know  at  once,  so  that  we  may  duplicate  the 
shipment  to  you  and  start  a  tracer? 

V»e  are  looking  forward  to  receiving  your  check  in  settlement 
of  your  account  for  last  month,  which  you  say  you  will  send 
next  week. 

V/e  want  to  thank  you  for  the  interest  you  have  already  shov;n 
and  will  spare  no  effort  to  keep  oiir  future  relations  just 
as  pleasant. 

Yours  very  truly, 

BRUH^JW^  &  COIJPANY 


EJH:EG 


By 


m// 


C.  W.  SHEPHERD 

STANFORD.  OHTO 


July   15,    1J18 


Brunswick  «e  Co.. 
304  Broadway. 
Chicago,  111. 

Ocntlemen: 


35 
111 

HOC 


Not   long  ago    I    saw   somewhere   that  you  were   contemplating 
adding   to   your  present   line  of  hardware   a   new   device   for 
obtaining   paupee   quickly.    I  have  been   looking  for   aome- 
thlng   like   this   and  would  like   all   the    information   you 
can   give   mo   about    it»    including  prices   and   terms. 


» 


V/hen  you  send  the  Information  about  the  gauges  I  wlah  you 
would  alao  ahip  me  two  groaa  of  your  Ho.  621;  that  la, 
provided  the  quality  la  all  you  say  it  la  in  your  catalog. 
That  lot  of  your  No.  6l8  which  you  sent  me  last  month  was 
about  as  poor  an  article  aa  I  ever  saw.  and  If  your  No.  621 
Isn't  any  better,  perhaps  you'd  better  not  send  any  of  it, 
as  I  want  good  goods  or  none  at  all. 

By  the  way,  now  that  I  think  of  it,  I  sent  you  an  order  last 
week  and  haven't  aeen  It  yet;  can't  you  ship  your  goods  more 
promptly  ao   I  can  get   them  on  time? 

Your  stotemen 


Now  hurry  alon/:^  that  order. 


Yours   truly, 
C.  W.   Shepherd 


Ul.    Oajl 
-cfUL-tA     On 

■J*^    --OlW"   -yyunM^  ^     LU-kiU^     jO-o^     ^■^^'^S^    yU-truJ 
um/JL    amU.      ^K^d~    -uHiA. 


It  is  a  pleasure  to  comply  «ith  your  request 
(date)  We  are  sending  you  today  a  copy  of 
our  (price  list  or  article  requested),  in  or 
that  it  may  reach  you  promptly 


.-A<LA-<iL4t^>X/-  ,iAy    yyrvU^\XLii^     ) 

80    TliJnks  lor  PMl  anil  FuTuri  Ftvors 

Be  «ant  to  thank  you  for  the  interest  you  have 
already  sho.n.  and  .ill  spare  no  effort  to 
r     ^  c.tiir*.  relations  lust  as  pleasant, 
keep  our  future  reiai-iuiia  juj"  "  .- 


BRUNSWICK  &  COMPANY 

HARDWARE 
104  BROADWAY 


C.  ff .  Shepherd, 

217  National  Avenue, 

Stanford,   Ohio. 

Dear  Sir: 

It  le  a  pleasure  to  comply  with  your  request  of  July  Vy* 
Tie   are  sending  you  today  a  copy  of  our  price  list,  in  or- 
der that  it  may  reach  you  promptly - 

For  a  complete  description  of  the  gauge  take  a  careful 
look  through  the  circular  which  I  am  enclosing.  It  will 
help  you  to  decide  exactly  what  fits  your  needs,  and 
will  give  you  thorough  information  about  quality,  prices 
and  the  satisfaction  felt  by  repreaentative  users. 


Thank  you  for  you 


arde 


of  the  15th. 


I  have  seen  that  your  goods  were  carefully  packed  and 
shipped.   They  should  reach  you  now  in  two  days.   Let 
me  know  if  they  do  not  come  promptly,  or  if  you  have 
any  questions  to  ask  about  them.  I  am  confident  that  you 
will  be  thoroughly  satisfied  with  this  shipment.  I  am 
therefore  looking  forward  to  other  orders  from  you  in  the 
near  future.  How  may  we  serve  you  further? 


We  find  on  looking  through  the  records  of  our  shipping 
department  that  the  goods  left  the  wareroom  on  the  10th. 
Therefore,  It  was  hardly  possible  for  them  to  have  reached 
you  at  the  time  you  wrote  to  us.   If,  however,  they  have 
not  arrived  by  the  time  you  receive  this  letter,  will  you 
please  let  us  know  at  once,  so  that  we  may  duplicate  the 
shipment  to  you  and  stert  a  tracer? 

v«e  are  looking  forward  to  receiving  your  check  In  settlement 
of  your  account  for  last  month.,  which  you  say  you  will  send 
next  week. 

V/e  want  to  thank  you  for  the  Interest  you  have  already  ahov;n 
and  will  spare  no  effort  to  keep  our  future  relations  just 

as  pleasant. 


BRUNSV/ICJi  &  COLIPAJIY 


<C^ 


WHY  NOT  ANSWER  YOUR  MAIL  THIS  WAY? 


How  easy  it  is  simply  to  jot  down  two  or  three 
numbers  with  a  word  here  or  there  and  possibly 
a  dictated  sentence  every  now  and  then!  You 
will  find  it  much  easier  than  dictating  whole 
letters — and  think  of  the  time  you'll  save.  W.  H. 
Leffingwell,  author  of  "Scientific  Office  Man- 
agement," estimates  that  with  this  plan  you 
can  save  37V2%  of  the  time  it  now  takes  you  to 
handle  your  correspondence.  For  example,  if  it 
now  takes  you  one  hour  to  answer  your  mail, 
you  can  cut  it  down  to  less  than  25  minutes. 
Take  the  letter  shown  in  this  insert,  for  instance. 


The  letter  written  by  C.  W.  Shepherd  starts  out 
with  an  inquiry  for  information — it  contains  also 
an  order,  a  complaint  about  the  quality  of  goods 
in  a  previous  shipment,  a  complaint  about  a 
delay  in  receiving  goods,  a  reference  to  future 
payment,  and  a  request  for  speed  in  handling 
the  order.  Pretty  complicated,  you'll  admit — 
and  yet  it  is  answered  quickly  and  effectively  by 
simply  noting  the  numbers  of  form  paragraphs 
and  dictating  one  original  sentence.  And  yet, 
the  letter  that  goes  out  bears  no  earmarks 
popularly  supposed  to  characterize  a  form  letter. 


5  n  ?.  (^ 


EDITOR'S  PREFACE 

The  chief  argument  for  standardizing  correspondence  is  the  estabhsh- 

ment  of  a  uniformity  of  style  and  pohcy.     This  argument  apphes  with 

|0    equal  force  to  a  one-man  business  and  to  the  concern  employing  dozens 

(    of  assistants.     This  uniformity  is  almost  impossible  in   an   office  with- 

r    out  a  paragraph  system,  but  where  that  method  is  used,  the  preponder- 

<»     ance  of  paragraphs  written  by  one  person  dominates  the  style,  and  the 

correspondent  unconsciously  adopts  it  in  a  very  short  time. 

Vft  Getting  the  personal  touch  is  purely  a  matter  of  style,  though  many 

A    people  imagine  that  it  depends  upon  whether  or  not  a  letter  is  dictated. 

*    The  form  letter  or  paragraph  must,   it   is   true,   have  been  originally 

"T    dictated  to  some  one  person,  either  imaginary  or  real,  but  it  is  quite 

possible  to  make  a  specially  dictated  letter  so  impersonal  that  even  the 

most  ardent  admirer  of  special  dictation  would  be  appalled. 

Another  important  advantage  of  the  paragraph  system  is  that  one 
can  write  good  letters  on  all  kinds  of  days,  which  as  every  correspondent 
knows,  is  a  practical  impossibility  by  any  other  method.  iV  correspon- 
dent at  times  gets  dull  which  has  its  effects  on  the  letters  he  dictates, 
V^  but  no  matter  how  dull  he  may  feel  he  can  remember  that  paragraph 
B24  just  fits  a  certain  case,  and  he  can  write  those  figures  on  the  letter 
and  hand  it  over  to  the  typist. 

It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that  a  paragraph  system  has  never 
been  designed  which  will  answer  all  of  the  routine  letters  that  come  into 
the  house.  This  is  no  argument  against  the  system,  for  if  one  can  dis- 
pose of  but  50%  of  the  letters  in  25%  of  the  time  necessary  to  dictate, 
that  will  leave  so  much  more  time  to  dictate  the  special  letters.  With- 
out a  paragraph  system,  a  busy  correspondent  will  be  often  tempted  to 
slight  the  important  correspondence. 

Nor  is  it  contended  that  the  form  paragraphs  or  their  classification 
as  shown  in  this  system  can  be  appHed  as  they  stand  to  any  or  all  busi- 
nesses. They  do,  however,  form  the  foundation  upon  which  may  be 
built  a  form  paragraph  and  dictation  system  that  will  exactly  fill  the 
requirements  of  any  business. 

My  experience  has  taught  me  that  many  of  the  paragraphs  appearing 
in  this  book  may  be  successfully  applied  without  changes  to  any  busi- 
ness while  others  will  of  necessity  need  adaptation  to  suit  particular  lines 
of  business.  This  adaptation  is  very  important  and  should  be  worked 
out  and  applied  very  closely. 


PREFACE 


In  preparing  a  system  of  standard  paragraphs  one  should  realize  that 
the  principle  of  reuse  is  being  employed,  that  of  using  innumerable  times, 
brainwork  performed  but  once.  There  is  therefore  no  necessity  for  speed. 
Take  as  much  time  as  is  necessary  with  each  paragraph  in  order  that 
it  express  exactly  the  thought  that  it  is  intended  to  convey.  Another 
advanced  principle  must  be  employed,  that  of  scheduling.  A  certain 
portion  of  the  day  must  be  set  aside  for  this  work  and  continued  daily 
until  the  system  is  sufficiently  completed.  I  have  known  many  cases 
where  a  paragraph  system  was  needed  and  actually  desired,  yet  not 
devised  because  no  one  had  time  to  do  the  work.  A  correspondent 
should  never  consider  it  time  lost  to  prepare  paragraphs  which  will 
shorten  his  day's  labor.     Set  aside  a  definite  time  each  day  for  this  work. 

An  added  feature  of  this  dictation  system  which  will  be  found  very 
effective  in  every  office,  are  the  five  separate  paragraph  books,  contain- 
ing the  sales  order,  complaint  and  collection  paragraphs  and  the  corre- 
spondent's manual  and  standard  practice  instruction  book.  They  are 
reproduced  in  this  form  from  the  book  in  order  to  provide  a  working  desk 
copy  for  typists  and  correspondents.  The  executive  may  thus  have  a 
complete  system  for  his  personal  use  without  depriving  his  assistants  of 
their  working  copies.  The  paragraphs  and  letters  in  these  books  are 
printed  on  one  side  of  the  page  only,  making  it  possible  for  those  con- 
cerns which  may  care  to  adapt  one  of  the  several  card  systems  described 
in  Chapter  XIII,  to  clip  the  paragraphs  and  paste  them  on  the  cards. 

W.  H.  Leffingwell 

CHICAGO,  OCTOBER  1,  1918 


n 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 
Putting  this  Book  to  Work  for  You 


Cutting  down  the  cost  of  letter  writing.  How  one  manager  analyzed  his  corre- 
spondence and  what  he  found  out  about  form  letters.  A  simple  plan  for  insuring 
quick  reference.  Symbols  that  save  time.  Standardizing  interoffice  correspondence, 
^^^ow  correspondence  is  "dictated."  A  standardized  dictation  chart.  How  one 
executive  watches  the  correspondence.  Why  correspondents  do  not  make  the 
same  mistake  twice. 


CHAPTER  II 

Using  Paragraphs  to  Close  Sales 13 

How  the  advertising  man  found  weak  points  in  the  selling  organization,  A  para- 
graph book  that  saved  $10,000.  Classifying  the  correspondence.  How  paragraphs 
are  checked  up.  Handling  branch  house  correspondence.  Some  talking  points  to 
use  in  answering  inquiries.  How  paragraphs  can  be  adapted  to  the  particular 
needs  of  any  business.  One  argument  that  usually  works.  How  additional  words 
or  paragraphs  are  inserted.  A  typical  letter.  Getting  the  personal  appeal  with 
standard  paragraphs. 

Index  to  Sales  Paragraphs 21 


CHAPTER  III 

Standard  Letters  that  Make  Sales 45 

Form  letters  that  get  under  the  prospect's  skin  and  bring  in  orders.  Whetting  the 
reader's  appetite.  Four  points  to  consider  in  sales  correspondence.  Ten  actual 
sales  letters  that  made  good. 

CHAPTER  IV 

Easier  Ways  of  Acknowledging  Orders 59 

What  to  do  when  personal  attention  is  required.  Adding  a  touch  of  local  color. 
The  dictation  slip.  The  four  divisions  of  order  correspondence.  How  the  para- 
graphs are  numbered.  Putting  sales  talk  into  the  order  letter.  How  to  make  the 
most  of  seasonal  specialties.  A  plan  which  does  away  with  typing.  Puttuag  lively 
phrasing  into  form  letters. 

Index  to  Order  Paragraphs 67 


vu 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  V 
Acknowledgments  that  Cut  Costs 87 

When  to  use  form  letters  in  order  correspondence.  One  disadvantage.  A  rather 
costly  error,  and  how  it  may  be  avoided.  One  method  of  handling  "fill-ins."  A 
neglected  complaint  that  cost  M,000.  How  one  firm  handles  its  complaints. 
Letters  that  don't  "get  mad."  How  to  analyze  complaints.  The  two  divisions 
of  complaint  letters.  What  one  correspondent  thinks  about  form  letters.  A 
typical  complaint  and  its  answer. 

Index  to  Order  Letters 91 


CHAPTER  VI 

Cutting  the  Cost  of  Adjusting  Complaints 101 

Records  that  watch  complaints.    Keeping  tab  on  each  department.    How  to  turn 
complaints  into  sales.    When  to  use  typed  letters.    A  useful  index. 

Index  to  Complaint  Paragraphs 105 


CHAPTER  VII 

Form  Letters  that  Handle  Complaints 127 

How  one  collection  man  gets  action.  A  letter  that  really  collects.  How  to  handle 
the  habitual  "slow-pay."  An  effective  ultimatum.  Handling  women  customers. 
The  unique  problem  of  the  professional  man.  A  letter  used  by  a  doctor.  Getting 
a  broad  collection  policy.  Taking  advantage  of  the  flexibility  of  form  paragraphs. 
Classifying  your  debtors. 

Index  to  Complaint  Letters 132 


CHAPTER  VIII 

Standard  Paragraphs  that  Collect 153 

How  a  series  of  form  letters  was  revised.  Using  sales  paragraphs  in  collection  let- 
ters. A  flexible  collection  plan.  How  to  use  the  unusual  letter.  A  letter  with  an 
interesting  story.     Fitting  your  letters  to  your  needs. 

Index  to  Collection  Paragraphs 160 


CHAPTER  IX 

Form  Letters  that  Speed  Up  Collections 173 

How  to  lighten  the  burden  of  dictation.  Keeping  in  touch  with  the  correspondence. 
How  two  correspondence  leaks  were  plugged.  Standardizing  correspondence 
routine.    Machines  that  save  time.    How  to  make  sure  that  enclosures  are  really 


vm 


CONTENTS 


enclosed.  Handling  incoming  letters.  A  profitable  use  for  distinctive  envelops. 
An  easy  way  to  route  letters.  Getting  the  letter  to  the  right  man.  A  plan  that 
helps  prevent  letters  from  being  lost.  How  letters  should  be  addressed.  What  a 
standard  style  can  do  for  your  letters.     MaiUng  machines  that  cut  costs. 

Index  to  Collection  Letters 176 


CHAPTER  X 
Getting  the  Mail  Out  on  Time 195 

A  plan  that  minimized  office  gossip.  An  incentive  to  better  work.  Breaking  in 
the  new  stenographer.  A  book  of  standards  used  by  one  concern.  How  to  pay 
stenographers.    One  way  of  measuring  the  work.    Standards  that  save  expense. 

CHAPTER  XI 

Making  the  Office  Force  Responsible 205 

An  interesting  correspondence  problem.  Putting  the  correspondence  on  an 
effective  basis.  How  to  use  untrained  correspondents.  A  "policy  book"  that 
saves  money.     How  new  paragraphs  are  inserted.     Gaging  the  customer's  mood. 

CHAPTER  XII 
Reducing  Office  Expense  by  Automatic  Routine       ....  212 

A  good  way  to  index  the  paragraphs.  Making  a  game  out  of  the  work.  How  to 
promote  initiative  among  the  correspondents.  How  a  poor  typist  became  a  good 
correspondent.  Keeping  an  eye  on  the  work.  A  graphic  record  of  complaints.  A 
plan  that  tripled  the  typists'  output.  Assigning  the  work  fairly.  Where  to  keep 
the  stationery.  A  check  on  the  accuracy  of  the  work.  Putting  the  typists  on 
their  mettle.  Some  sources  of  lost  time.  When  time  studies  will  help.  Ten 
thousand  useless  motions  saved.  How  the  standard  was  set.  A  standard  wage. 
A  table  for  figuring  bonus.  Stimulating  the  slow  worker.  Encouraging  the 
workers.    Where  office  discipline  is  not  needed. 

CHAPTER  XIII 

Mechanical  Devices  that  Speed  Up  Automatic  Dictation  .      .  228 

How  to  keep  form  paragraphs  flexible.  Devices  that  aid  the  correspondent.  A 
convenient  index.  Some  specially  made  equipment.  An  upright  rack  for  index 
panels.    A  case  for  cards.     Typing  from  memory. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

What  Form  Letters  Will  Do  for  You 233 

A  series  that  brought  50%  returns.  One  way  to  use  testimonials.  What  you  can 
do  with  a  booklet.  BuUding  good  will.  Advertising  that  reaches  live  prospects. 
How  indifferent  readers  can  be  converted  into  likely  prospects.    Following  up  at 


CONTENTS 


the  right  time.  Getting  the  prospect  to  see  your  side.  Why  one  campaign  was 
successful.  CapitaUzing  the  errors.  Finding  the  "why"  back  of  an  order.  The 
knack  of  making  your  letters  reflect  your  personality.  One  way  to  get  the  per- 
sonal touch.  A  letter  that  combines  sincerity  and  enthusiasm.  Getting  customers 
to  pay  promptly.  Holding  the  debtor  to  terms.  The  question  of  discount  dates. 
An  argument  that  often  gets  the  cash.  \^Tiat  to  do  when  terms  are  not  lived  up  to. 
Handling  individual  cases.  One  way  in  which  your  bank  can  help.  How  one 
man  checks  up  on  drafts.  Putting  it  up  to  the  customer.  Points  to  remember  in 
handling  complaints. 

CHAPTER  XV 

Openers  and  Closers  that  Make  Your  Form  Letters  Personal  251 

Where  one  man  gets  his  ideas.  Some  "openers"  that  worked  unusually  well. 
The  secret  of  gaining  attention  at  the  start.  A  plan  that  sometimes  gains  confi- 
dence. Some  more  interesting  openings.  Making  letters  hold  the  customer's 
interest.  Creating  a  desire  for  your  product.  "Openers"  that  pave  the  way  for 
orders.  Why  some  paragraphs  don't  ring  true.  When  not  to  use  the  "personal 
tone."  One  way  of  using  the  "  plot  idea  "  effectively.  Why  one  plot  failed.  Points 
to  watch  in  writing  sales  letters.  How  to  suit  the  style  to  the  purpose.  Using 
the  complimentary  close  to  advantage.  Sales  letters  that  clinch  the  order.  Some 
interesting  closers.  Paragraphs  that  have  proved  out.  Some  points  to  emphasize. 
An  easy  way  to  combine  clearness  with  force.  How  the  telephone  can  help.  A 
novel  way  of  requesting  a  remittance.  An  unusually  effective  "closer."  The 
purpose  of  the  "closer." 


CHAPTER  I 


PUTTING  THIS  BOOK  TO  WORK  FOR  YOU 


BEFORE  a  series  of  form  letters  was  adopted  in  an 
electrical  equipment  factory,  four  correspondents 
and  four  stenographers  were  required  to  handle 
the  mail.  Within  a  month  after  a  form  letter  chart 
and  system  had  been  put  into  use,  the  staff  was  reduced 
to  one  correspondent  and  one  stenographer. 

Dictating  letters  day  after  day,  for  five,  six,  and 
sometimes  eight  hours  with  little  intermission,  the 
manager  of  this  factory  finally  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  he  was  repeating  only  a  few  basic  facts  in  most  of 
his  correspondence.  The  same  combinations  of  words, 
he  noticed,  crept  into  his  communications  time  and 
again.  Sometimes  entire  letters,  with  possibly  the 
exception  of  only  one  or  two  small  details,  were  found 
to  be  phrased  exactly  alike. 

He  took  from  the  files  carbons  of  all  letters  which  he 
had  dictated  for  the  past  month,  and  thoroughly  dis- 
sected them.  His  analysis  proved  his  point.  There 
were  only  about  a  dozen  fundamentals  dealt  with  in  all 
the  month's  correspondence.  Almost  every  letter  could 
be  classified  under  one  of  these  dozen  headings.  The 
variations  were  only  in  minor  details. 

With  the  results  of  his  analysis  before  him,  the  factory 
manager  decided  that  by  standardizing  he  could  make 
his  correspondence  less  costly  and  monotonous,  and  at 
the  same  time  improve  its  quality. 

His  first  step  in  this  direction  was  to  list  the  dozen 
main  headings  and  classify  under  them  all  the  variations 
which  had  appeared  in  the  letters.  When  this  work  was 
finished,  he  found  that  he  had  on  his  complete  Ust  a  few 
more  than  200  items. 

A  letter  was  dictated  to  cover  each  item.  Into  each 
of  these  letters,  no  matter  whether  it  answered  an  inquiry, 
met  a  complaint,  or  acknowledged  an  order,  he  put  the 


Cut  down  the 
cost  of  letter 
writing 


How  one  mana- 
ger analyzed  the 
correspondence 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Why  standard 
letters  give  satis- 
faction 


Perhaps  this 
will  help  you 


A  simple  plan 
for    insuring 
quick   reference 


same  care  as  if  it  were  intended  to  sell  a  big  bill  of  goods. 
As  the  series  stood  when  it  finally  met  his  approval,  every 
letter  was  excellent  in  quahty,  and  each  covered  just  one, 
commonly  recmring  point.  Bound  in  book  form,  the 
series  was  distributed  among  the  correspondents  and 
stenographers,  and  it  was  used  thereafter  for  all  except 
the  unusual  correspondence. 

In  any  business,  a  searching  analysis  of  the  letters 
wTitten  and  received  will  show  similar  results.  Under 
cover  of  a  thousand  different  handwritings — concealed 
in  the  various  methods  of  expression  of  as  many  men — 
the  same  inquiries,  complaints,  and  order  combinations 
are  coming  in  through  the  mail  day  after  day.  The 
same  rephes  also,  the  same  excuses  and  the  same  argu- 
ments, are  dictated  time  and  again  in  letters  written  to 
prospects  and  customers. 

A  few  letters,  it  is  true,  will  be  out  of  the  ordinary 
nm.  Such  are  those  in  which  a  firm's  pohcy  is  con- 
sidered, financial  matters  are  decided,  unusual  contracts 
are  in  prospect,  and  so  on.  But  the  volume  of  such 
correspondence,  compared  with  all  the  letters  received 
in  a  day,  is  small.  Varied  as  it  seems,  today's  mail 
really  brings  up  few  problems  that  were  not  discussed, 
decided,  and  worded  yesterday  or  last  week. 

The  great  problem  is  to  enlarge  replies  in  a  funda- 
mental way.  Figure  1  illustrates  the  method  which  the 
manager  of  the  electrical  equipment  factory  used  for 
ready  reference  to  his  fonn  letters.  Each  article  manu- 
factiu-ed  by  the  company  received  a  distinctive  general 
number,  beginning  with  100  and  running  to  600.  Thus, 
all  correspondence  relating  to  17-K  motors  was  classified 
under  100;  all  relating  to  24-J  motors  under  200;  and 
so  on,  each  class  of  product  being  identified  by  a  ''hun- 
dred" unit.  Within  each  general  class  were  divisions 
and  subdivisions,  so  arranged  as  to  enable  the  con^e- 
spondent  to  find  the  coiTect  paragraph  to  use  for  reply- 
ing, in  the  shortest  possible  time. 

As  an  example,  a  customer  requests  that  full  informa- 
tion in  regard  to  a  25  horse-power  motor,  number  17-K, 
be  sent  to  one  of  his  friends.  Running  down  his  chart, 
the  correspondent  quickly  locates  the  general  heading 
for  this  type  of  motor,  and  it  requires  but  a  minute  to 
find  under  "120"  the  fist  of  letters  deahng  with  cases 
where  a  customer  sends  the  name  of  a  prospect.     Without 


Form  Letter  Chart 

100-199     17.K     Motor 

100.  Orders  Article 

101    Sends  Money 

]02    Requests  Sent  on  Trial 

103    Not  in  Stock 

104    Credit  Not  Sound 

110   Wants  Information 

ill    Asks  for  Description 

-   111-1 

10  Horse-power 

111-2 

20  Horse-power 

111-3 

25  Horse-power 

111-4 

40  Horse-power 

119     Acl^e  fnr  Priro 

-.    112-1 
112-2 

10  Horse-power 
20  Horse-power 

112-3 

25  Horse-power 

112-4 

40  Horse-power 

113   Asks  for  Name  of  Dealer 

120    Sends  Prospect 

121    Asks  to  Tell  about 

_    121-1 

10  Horse-power 

121-2 

20  Horse-power 

121-3 

25  Horse-power 

121-4 

40  Horse-power 

i^n 

- 

200-299     24-J      Motor 

200    Orders  Article 

201    Sends  Money 

on? 

FIGURE  1 :  In  order  to  make  his  form  letters 
quickly  accessible,  one  manager  uses  a  chart 
like  this.  The  use  of  a  modified  decimal  sys- 
tem of  indexing  simplifies  the  classification  of 


the  various  letters  and  enables  the  correspond- 
ent to  find  the  correct  paragraph  without  los- 
ing time.  Each  article  which  the  company 
handles  is  given  a  distinctive  general  number. 


Inter-office  Communication 


4vA^>Jk     £>< 


Addressee 
Department  _E^ 


Date. 


(^—'3Lo 


Please  comply  with,  or  note  number  checked  below 


1      Reply  to  my  letter  of 


2      Send 


3      Furnish  immediately  billing  price 


Enclosed  find  c.  o.  d.  bill  requested 
in  your  letter  of 


Furnish  car  number  and 
reshipment  date 


6      Furnish  correct  reference 


Note  below  information 
asked  for  in  yours  of 


Furnish  further  information  or 
details  of  allowance  covered 
by  your  credit  number 


\^ 


See  letter  of 
dated 


and  explain 


10 


Complying  with  your  letter 
herewith  find  copies  of 


Attached  find  bill  rendered  on 
I'l  informal  order. 

Forward  to  customer  with 
request  for  formal  order 


^2     Refer  to  bill  and  furnish 

correct  customer's  order  number 


13 


Has  requisition 
billed  complete? 


.been 


14 


When  will  shipment  on  order  /  4  63 
be  made? 


15 


Refer  to  requisition 
furnish  bill  number 


and 


JtrUyyyJi^ 


3o^. 


CU^ -^^.£.^1^^       Department 

Par        /.     -io.      /Jj^j^iUr,.^ 


FIGURE   2:     A  thorough  analysis  of  inter-  a  note  for  every  inquiry  all  the  correspondent 

«4ffice   correspondence   resulted   in   this   form,  has  to  do  is  to  check  the  question  he  wants 

xhich   contains   all   the   questions   most   fre-  answered.     A  word  or  two  supplies  the  answer, 

Juently  asked  in  one  office.     Instead  of  writing  and  a  worth-while  saving  of  time  is  the  result. 


CUTTING  CORRESPONDENCE  COSTS 


referring  to  the  letter  itself,  the  correspondent  sees  that 
number  121.3  is  just  the  one  to  use.  This  method  of 
grouping  makes  reference  simple. 

The  correspondent  marks  the  number  121.3  on  the 
letter  he  is  answering  and  throws  it  into  the  letter  box. 
Without  further  instructions,  the  stenographer  copies 
the  correct  reply  from  her  form  letter  book. 

A  series  of  symbols  and  guide  checks  was  another 
short  cut  devised  to  save  time  in  the  correspondence 
reorganization  of  this  concern.  As  he  reads  a  letter  for 
the  first  time,  the  correspondent  red-pencils  in  a  small 
circle  those  portions  to  which  he  wishes  to  refer  again. 
Then,  when  he  comes  to  number  or  dictate  the  correct 
reply,  his  eye  is  guided  at  once  to  the  vital  points,  and 
it  is  unnecessary  for  him  to  read  the  letter  entirely 
through  a  second  time. 

Notations  hke  the  following  are  his  guide  to  the 
stenographer  when  he  has  finished  with  a  letter  or  wishes 
further  information. 

P — bring  previous  correspondence; 

I — investigate  this  thoroughly; 

F-10,  F-15,  and  so  on — file  10  (15,  and  so  on)  days 

ahead  in  tickler  file; 
FC — send  to  central  files. 

The  stenographer  secures  data  as  directed,  or  files 
the  letters  properly,  as  the  directions  may  be,  and  the 
correspondent  seldom  leaves  his  desk. 

Interoffice  communications  were  studied  and  the 
questions  commonly  asked  standardized  in  the  same 
way  as  the  correspondence  with  customers  and  prospects. 
However,  it  was  found  here  that  a  single  sheet  made  up 
in  the  style  of  Figure  2  answered  practically  every  pur- 
pose and  saved  time.  These  blanks  were  printed  on  the 
office  duplicating  machine.  It  is  necessary  for  the 
inquirer  simply  to  write  on  one  of  these  sheets  the  name 
of  the  man  he  is  addressing  and  his  own  name,  and  put 
a  checkmark  opposite  the  matter  about  which  he  is 
inquiring,  adding,  if  it  is  thought  necessary,  a  symbol  or 
word  to  make  the  question  plainer.  The  answer  is  made 
on  the  same  sheet. 

In  any  concern  handling  a  considerable  number  of 
articles,  the  combinations  that  commonly  arise  run  into 
the  thousands.     Even  to  list  them  all  would  be  difficult; 


You  can  make 
similar  savings 


Symbols  that 
save  tim£ 


What  to  do  with 
inter o^ce  com- 
munications 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


How  to  include 
names  and 
"special 
points ' ' 


Combinations  to  compose  a  form  letter  series  that  would  cover  them 
that  cover  your  would  be  impracticable.  Here,  the  solution  that  has 
requirements  been  worked  out  in  other  concerns  is  not  more  form 
letters,  but  more  form  paragraphs.  The  size  of  the 
standardizing  unit  is  simply  reduced,  and  thus  the 
flexibihty  of  the  system  is  increased  indefinitely.  With 
only  three  paragraphs  a  considerable  number  of  combi- 
nations is  possible.  With  50  or  100  fundamental  para- 
graphs at  one's  disposal,  the  number  of  combinations 
that  can  be  made  is  almost  unlimited. 

In  such  a  system,  each  one  of  your  paragraphs  takes 
up  just  one  subject — sets  forth  to  the  prospective  cus- 
tomer one  chain  of  argument  in  favor  of  the  article;  tells 
why  one  item  on  an  order  cannot  be  shipped;  answers 
one  complaint;  or  explains  one  reason  why  your  cus- 
tomer should  pay  promptly  for  the  goods  he  has  bought. 
A  single  paragraph  can,  however,  frequently  be  made  to 
cover  any  number  of  cases,  simply  by  leaving  space  for 
the  name  of  the  article,  the  date,  number,  and  so  on, 
to  be  filled  in  correctly  as  each  letter  is  copied.  A  broom, 
for  example,  a  keg  of  nails,  a  suit  of  clothes,  a  gas  engine 
and  50  other  articles  may  be  out  of  stock  for  different 
orders.  But  only  one  paragraph,  stating  the  fact  and 
leaving  space  for  the  name  of  the  article  to  be  filled  in, 
need  be  composed.  When  the  analysis  (page  2)  has 
been  soundly  made,  form  paragraph  dictation  is  quickly 
learned  and  fits  a  great  variety  of  enterprises  with  extraor- 
dinary aptness.  Of  course,  incomplete  analysis  and 
unwillingness  to  become  famihar  with  the  paragraphs,  on 
the  other  hand,  are  sure  to  make  trouble. 
"Dictating"  The  correspondent  using  a  form  paragraph  book  has 

the  letter  a  chart  similar  to  that  used  in  connection  with  the  form 

letter  series.  When  he  ''dictates,"  instead  of  noting  the 
number  of  one  form  letter,  he  writes  the  numbers  of 
the  various  paragraphs  that  bring  out  the  points  he 
wishes  to  make,  in  the  order  in  which  they  are  to  appear 
in  the  letter,  and  with  the  salutation  and  close  he  desires, 
if  unusual.  Each  paragraph  is  originally  written  with 
an  eye  to  having  it  fit  in  naturally  before  or  after  any 
other  paragraph  in  the  series.  The  complete  letter, 
because  of  this  particular  attention  to  coherence,  is  well 
rounded  and  reads  quite  smoothly  from  first  to  last — far 
more  so  than  the  average  rapid-dictation  phrases  of  the 
all-day  correspondent. 


InterhouseX 

^__^  Call  bells 

Commu-     \ 

- 

nication      1 — ^_ 

Division     1 

^'          ( Messengers 

Oversee  department  in  general 
Distnbuto  connected  correspondence 
Refer  customers'  shipping  inquiries  to  shoo 
Reply  to  customers'  inquiries 
Receive  and  follow  up  all  telegrams 
Distribute  lunch  money  and  keep  report 
.  Keep  report  of  all  stamps  received 


Open  mail 

Translate  lelegrams 

Connect  correspondence  to  previous 

Pass  all  unconnected  mail  to  ctiief  clerk  daily 

Check  out  all  bills  ol  material 


Check  returned  material  reports 

Index  returned  material  reports 

Conned  returned  material  reports 

Make  returned  material  cards 

Issue  dispositions 

Issue  credit  requests 

FolloW'Up 

Check  freight  bills 

Classify  cards 


W.  A.  B.  Co. 

Am.  Brake  Co. 
West  Pac.  C.  B.  Co. 


fVlonthly  report  angle  cocks  repaired  by 
Automatic  train  stops— monthly  report 
Detroit  sights  feed  fittings  — monthly  report 
Emery  lubricators  and  sticks— monthly  report 
Instruction  chart  rocks—monthly  reports 
West,  auto  car  and  air  couplers  monthly  report 

W.  A.  B.  Co. 

Can.  West.  Co.     Weekly  report    Passeji^ger 

Am.  Brake  Co. 

V/est  Pac.  C.  B.  Co. 
Monthly  report  D-l-F  pumps 
Monthly  report  dynamotor  compressor  outfits 
Monlhly  report  cut-out  cocks  repaiied 
Monthly  report  quick  action  indicators 
Monthly  report  extra  quality  pipe  fittings 
Monthly  report  J.  M.  expanders— in  equipment— i 


All  schedules 


Freight 

Friction  draft  goar 

Traction  equipment 

W.  A.  B.  Co. 

Am.  Brako  Co. 
Can.  West,  Co. 


3  repairs 
W.  A.  8.  Co. 
Am.  Brake  Co. 
Can.  Wost.Co. 


Monthly  report  triple  valves  converted 

Monthly  report  testing  apparatus 

Monthly  report  roads  from  which  we  receive  no  business 

Monthly  report  slack  adjusters  Am.  Brake  Co.  nnd  W.  A.  B.  Co. 

Monthly  report  spring  type  pressure  valves 

Weekly  report  freight  equipment  with  converted  valves 

Weekly  report  freight  equipment  with  rebuilt 

Weekly  report  universal  equipment 

Monthly  report  double  equipment 

Record  N.  B.  and  Elec.  Co.  and  pumps 


Index  all  general  orders 

Examined  and  checked  by  interpreters 

Transcribe  to  general  order  form 

Make  returned  material  cards 

Check  general  order  with  original  order 

Secure  information  from  Customer  a/id  Engineering  Departmeot 


Follow  up 
Billograph 
Distribute  copies 


Look  over  correspondence  and  mark  for  files 

Make  new  files 

File  correspondence 

File  orders 

File  inquiry  copies  of  general  orders 


Check  notices  of  shipments 
Write  notices  of  shipments 
Distributing  notices  of  shipments 

"  Assign  work 

Weekly  reports 

Furnishing  supplies 

Inspecting  work 

Transcribing  cylinders 

Stenctli 

Form  letters 

Shipping  letters 

Copy  work 
.  Miscellanecus  work 


FIGURE  3:  It  clears  up  hazy  conceptions  to 
have  your  organization  mapped  out  in  black 
and  white.  That's  what  this  chart  does  for 
the  correspondence  and  order  department  of 


one  concern.  There  is  no  chance  of  waiving 
responsibility  when  the  work  is  outlined  like 
this,  especially  if  the  individuals  responsible 
are  named  on  the  blank  spaces   at  the  right. 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Hitting  the  nail 
on  the  head 


This  of  course  Neither  form  letters  nor  paragraphs,  however,  can 

is  true  be  written  to  cover  every  need  that  will  arise.    To  some 

letters  you  will  have  to  dictate  individual  replies.  But 
the  proportion  which  these  bear  to  your  total  corre- 
spondence can  be  reduced  to  a  small  percentage,  con- 
sisting for  the  most  part  of  the  friendly  or  policy  letters 
of  the  men  at  the  head. 

A  result  of  the  factory  manager's  analysis  was  the 
standardized  dictation  chart  (Figure  4).  Finding  that 
the  average  correspondent  in  dictating  a  letter  offhand 
strikes  out  in  a  more  or  less  haphazard  way  with  httle 
idea  of  how  he  is  going  to  tell  his  story,  he  devised  this 
chart  to  serve  as  a  guide. 

It  affords  a  standard  and  effective  viewpoint  for  start- 
ing the  letter,  developing  it  logically  and  bringing  it  to 
the  right  kind  of  a  close.  The  correspondent  checks 
each  important  letter  against  the  chart,  deciding  the 
attitude  and  style  which  it  seems  best  to  adopt,  and  the 
correct  method  of  approach. 

A  good  way  to  start  any  letter  is  to  find  a  subject 
in  which  the  man  to  whom  you  are  writing  is  interested, 
and  tell  him  something  about  it  in  an  interesting  way. 
Instead  of  using  merely  general  phrases,  be  specific. 
If  you  discover  that  an  order  which  he  claims  he  never 
received  left  your  warehouse  on  the  sixteenth  of  the 
month,  tell  him  that;  but  ease  your  reply  by  teUing 
him  at  the  same  time  how  you  seaiched  the  files  to  get 
the  information  for  him. 

In  bringing  the  letter  to  a  close,  ask  yourself  whether 

or  not  you  wish  the  prospect  to  do  something.     If  not, 

all  you  need  is  a  friendly  sentence  or  paragraph.    If, 

however,  you  do  wish  to  bring  him  to  action,  urge  some 

reason  against  delay.    Perhaps  you  can  remind  him  that 

This  plan  will       the  stock  of  the  article  you  are  selhng  is  limited  and 

often  bring  only  early  orders  can  be  supphed;    or  that  prices  will 

additional  increase  in  the  near  future;    or  delay  means  a  money 

business  loss  to  the  prospect;  and  so  on.    When,  by  such  means, 

you  have  urged  your  prospect  to  prompt  action,  make 

the  action  easy  for  him.    Enclose  a  card  which  he  can 

sign,  an  envelop  stamped  and  addressed,  or  a  telegram 

filled  out  ready  for  dispatching. 

The  body  of  the  letter,  being  the  largest  part,  is  the 
part  where  it  is  perhaps  easiest  for  correspondents  to  go 
astray.     Here  you  are  m-ging  the  prospect  to  buy,  the 


start 


In  What  U  He  Interested? 


What  Can  I  Say  to  Him  About  It? 


How  Can  I  Say  It  Most  Agreeably? 


What  Did  I  Do  to  Come  to  That  Decision? 


Story  - 


When  Writer 


Attitude 


How  to  State 
the  Case 


Arguments 


Points  of 
Attack 


Tone  of 
Letter 


Is  Refusing 
to  Comply 


Defensive 


Seeks  to 

Prevent 

Action 

against  Him 


Show  Balance 

of  Things 
Not  in  Favor 
of  an  Action 


P       It  Is  Not  Logical       -, 


It  Is  Not  Just 


L       It  Is  Not  Honest 


Reader's 
Mind  and 
Conscience 


—    Appealing 


Wishes  to 
Cause  Action 


Aggressive 


Show  How  the 
Balance  of 
Satisfaction 
and  Profit 
Urges  the 
Action 


What  Article  Is: 
Describe  It 


What  Article  Does: 

Effect  of  It  and 

Claim  for  It 


What  Article  Has 
L-l  Done:  Testimonials 
and  Records 


Reader's 
Imagination 
and  Feelings 


Stimulating 


FIGURE  4:  A  manager  found  that  his  corre- 
spondents were  too  apt  to  plunge  into  a  letter 
without  being  quite  sure  of  their  purpose. 
So  he  devised  this  chart  as  a  guide,  and  with 


its  help  each  important  letter  is  now  thoroughly 
analyzed  before  it  is  dictated.  On  the  opposite 
page  is  a  description  of  how  the  chart  is  used. 
It  can  easily  be  applied  to  almost  any  letter. 


f^~lo-^6 

Sent 

Received 

Notes 

Form 
Letters 

Form 
Paragraphs 

Dictated 

Orders   Total 

^ 

1  S-'i 

Orders  Requiring 
Special  Handling 

SLo 

Collection 

/^ 

3.0 

Sales 

1,000 

^Ho 

S^ 

3.0 

Complaints 

I 

II 

1 

li 

Special 

^ 

Miscellaneous 

I3L 

FIGURE  5 :  Here's  a  form  of  report  which  has 
been  found  particularly  helpful  in  keeping  tab 
on  correspondence.  It's  extremely  simple,  but 
it  indicates  conditions  at  a  glance.     For  in- 


stance, if  the  number  of  dictated  letters  is 
unreasonably  large,  the  standard  paragraphs 
may  need  revision  or  perhaps  the  trouble  is 
that  additional  paragraphs  need  to  be  prepared. 


10 


CUTTING  CORRESPONDENCE  COSTS 


slow  customer  to  pay,  or  trying,  perhaps,  to  make  the 
man  who  is  dissatisfied  with  his  purchase  see  that  he 
has  received  generous  value;  or  endeavoring  to  forestall 
possible  objections  from  other  customers  by  telling 
them  how  you  have  handled  their  orders.  Yet,  what- 
ever the  subject,  you  will  find  that  in  all  your  corre- 
spondence you  are  either  (1)  defending  some  action  or 
attitude  of  your  own,  or  (2)  trying  to  prevent  some  move 
against  you,  or  (3)  aggressively  urging  some  action 
upon  the  man  to  whom  you  are  writing. 

Recognition  of  this  fact  enables  you  to  standardize  to 
a  certain  extent  all  letters  you  dictate,  as  to  the  kind  of 
argument  you  must  use  and  the  style  you  may  wisely 
adopt.  When  you  are  on  the  defensive,  you  will  make 
your  phrases  cordial,  with  no  abrupt  or  disputed  state- 
ments to  arouse  opposition.  If  your  position  permits  you 
to  be  on  the  aggressive,  as  in  a  sales  letter,  your  style  may 
be  more  vigorous.  You  can  "come  up  hard"  with  a 
strong  statement  or  the  assertion  of  a  fact. 

After  a  concern  has  passed  out  of  the  piu^ely  one- 
man  stage,  the  executive  himself  can  handle  only  vital 
correspondence.  The  mail,  nevertheless,  affords  an 
important  means  of  keeping  a  finger  on  the  pulse  of  the 
business;  and  every  executive  is  interested  in  knowing 
definitely  how  close  his  service  is  keeping  to  the  pubhc's 
taste.  To  achieve  this,  one  manager  leaves  all  corre- 
spondence details  to  his  employees,  but  has  his  secretary 
provide  him  every  day  at  4  o'clock  an  analysis  of  incom- 
ing and  outgoing  letters. 

The  executive  quickly  checks  over  this  analysis 
(Figure  5).  He  notes  letters  which  he  wishes  to  see  and 
points  out  places  where  there  is  special  need  for  his 
secretary's  supervision  in  handling  the  mail.  Com- 
plaints from  customers  reveal  the  snags  in  his  business 
machine,  and  show  him  just  which  departments  and 
persons  are  the  ones  which  are  at  fault.  The  list  of 
orders  and  inquiries,  with  similar  figures  for  the  same 
day  of  the  preceding  year  noted  in  red,  brings  out  fluctu- 
ations and  growth  in  a  strong  hght. 

Any  outgoing  letters  where  an  error  might  affect 
the  company's  reputation,  the  manager  himself  ''proofs." 
Minor  faults  he  allows  to  go  through  with  the  idea  that 
they  will  draw  the  customer's  complaint.  Then  he  calls 
the  correspondent's  attention  to  the  matter.     Having 


After  all,  isn't 
this  really  the 
case? 


Where  to  put 
the  proper 
emphasis 


How  one  execu- 
tive keeps  in 
touch 


11 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


House  policies 
are  easily 
watched 


both  his  blunder  and  its  result  before  him,  the  man  who 
is  at  fault  is  unlikely  to  commit  the  same  mistake  a 
second  time.  Had  he  been  corrected  before  the  letter 
went  out,  the  point  would  probably  have  been  driven 
home  to  him  less  vitally. 

By  the  combination  of  (1)  standard  paragraphs  and 
form  letters  which  indefinitely  keep  his  best  paragraphs 
at  work,  and  (2)  standard  methods  of  watching  his 
correspondence,  this  manager  develops  his  assistants, 
cuts  out  the  unnecessary  costs  which  bulk  large  in  con- 
cerns which  fail  to  systematize  their  correspondence, 
guards  his  correspondence  against  expensive  blunders  in 
important  issues  and  makes  every  stamp  add  to  the 
good  will  of  his  pubUc. 


12 


CHAPTER  II 


USING  PARAGRAPHS  TO  CLOSE  SALES 


Sales  in  a  hardware  concern  had  been  falling  off.  An 
expert  advertising  man  was  engaged  to  find  the  reason 
for  the  slump,  and  remedy  it  by  a  vigorous  campaign. 
He  was  given  complete  Uberty  to  make  whatever  changes 
in  the  advertising  policy  of  the  concern  he  saw  fit,  pro- 
vided only  that  he  brought  results.  After  a  week's 
thorough  examination  of  the  company's  selling  plan,  he 
closeted  himself  with  the  president  and  produced  carbons 
of  average  letters  which  he  had  found  in  the  prospect  files. 

*'The  reason  your  sales  are  falhng  off,"  he  said, 
tossing  the  folder  upon  the  table,  "is  not  because  of  any 
weakness  in  your  advertising  copy.  On  the  whole  it  is 
the  equal  of  that  produced  by  any  house  in  the  trade. 
The  real  weakness  Hes  in  your  correspondence.  Your 
inquiries  have  been  handled  by  low-priced  correspond- 
ents, who  are  frequently  careless  in  their  rephes,  and 
scarcely  ever  use  convincing  sales  arguments.  Prospects 
who  might  have  been  turned  into  faithful  customers 
are  here  treated  in  a  curt  and  almost  discourteous  way. 
Probably  your  correspondence  in  other  departments  is 
equally  haphazard.  If  you  will  spend  in  six  months 
as  much  money  putting  your  correspondence  on  a  sound 
basis  as  you  spend  every  month  for  advertising,  I'll 
guarantee  this  falhng  off  of  sales  will  stop. 

''You  spend  a  lot  of  money  in  the  magazines  and 
trade  papers  to  get  customers,"  the  advertising  man 
continued,  ''and  when  you  get  them  you  slap  them  in 
the  face  with  letters  like  these.  You  either  must  change 
completely  the  personnel  in  your  correspondence  depart- 
ment, and  hire  high-salaried  men,  who  will  put  some  life 
into  your  letters  but  who  will  be  a  constant  drain  on 
your  pocketbook;  or  else  pay  to  standardize  your  corre- 
spondence once  and  for  all.  We  can,  however,  make  up 
a  paragraph  book  to  cover  every  point  in  your  routine 


What  the  ad- 
vertising man 
found  out 


The  weak  spot 
in  this  selling 
organization 


13 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  is  surely 
a  worth-while 
saving 


An  expert  check 
on  each  para- 
graph 


Even  the  branch 
house    corre- 
spondence is 
included 


correspondence,  and  with  it  the  least  efficient  corre- 
spondent will  be  able  to  dictate  letters  that  will  average 
favorably  with  those  of  a  $4,000  man." 

The  president  accepted  the  specialist's  verdict. 
When  the  paragraph  book  was  completed  and  put  in 
use,  the  company  found  that  it  had  made  a  saving 
during  the  first  year  of  $10,000  in  letter  costs.  The 
sales  slump,  moreover,  was  completely  checked. 

In  making  up  the  series  of  paragraphs  for  this  con- 
cern, the  method  followed  was  to  keep  a  tripUcate  carbon 
of  every  letter  for  a  period  of  60  days.  At  the  end  of 
this  time  these  carbons  were  cut  up,  and  separated  in 
piles  according  to  subject.  The  subjects  were  classified 
and  Hsted,  and  then  from  beginning  to  end  new  para- 
graphs were  dictated  to  cover  every  phase  of  each  subject 
that  had  been  brought  out  in  the  analysis.  Especial 
care  was  given  to  starting  and  finishing  paragraphs  so 
that  they  would  fit  in  naturally  with  other  paragraphs, 
or  would  stand  alone. 

"WTien  this  work  was  done,  every  paragraph  was 
taken  up  with  the  correspondent  who  was  expected  to 
use  it.  The  sales  department,  for  instance,  passed  on 
all  sales  paragraphs,  and  the  credit  department  on  all 
credit  paragraphs.  Wherever  necessary,  individual  para- 
graphs were  revised.  As  finally  used,  they  bore  the 
O.  K.  of  all  department  heads,  and  were  in  addition  the 
careful  work  of  an  expert  letter  writer. 

The  paragraphs  were  bound  in  book  form  and  dis- 
tributed to  every  correspondent,  and  to  others  who 
had  occasion  to  write  letters.  The  same  paragraphs 
were  also  distributed  among  the  35  branches  of  the  com- 
pany and  were  placed  in  the  hands  of  several  hundred 
jobbers  having  exclusive  territory.  Thus  the  entire 
correspondence  of  the  company  from  the  president's 
office  in  New  York,  to  the  branch  in  St.  Louis  and  the 
jobber  in  Dallas  was  standardized.  Of  the  increase  of 
effectiveness  in  the  concern's  letters,  there  came  to  light 
many  convincing  instances. 

As  this  experience  proved,  it  is  not  only  possible 
to  standardize  routine  correspondence,  but  moreover, 
standardization  is  sometimes  the  only  method  possible 
to  maintain  letters  on  a  imiformly  high  level  without 
spending  too  large  a  sum  in  salaries  to  high-priced 
correspondents. 


14 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


Sales  paragraphs,  it  was  found  in  this  concern,  were     These  two 
the  most  numerous  and,  at  first,  the  most  difficult  to     angles  are 
bring  into  the  system.     But  logical  analysis  showed  that     always  con- 
the  different  kinds  of  arguments  were  not  large.     There     sidered 
are  two  main  divisions  in  these  arguments,  two  angles 
from  which  you  can  approach  your  prospect   (Index, 
page  21).     In  the  first  case,  you  discuss  specific  features 
of  the  article  you  are  trying  to  sell;  in  the  second,  you 
discuss   attractive   features   of   your   proposition.    The 
inquiry  to  be  answered  is  a  good  index  to  the  points 
you  wish  to  touch  on. 

When  you  approach  a  prospect  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  article  itself,  you  have  several  definite  talking 
points,  such  as  quality  in  the  article,  its  actual  mechanical 
make-up,  and  so  on;  the  effect  it  will  have  on  the  pros- 
pect when  he  uses  it,  increasing  his  pleasure,  benefiting 
him,  and  so  on;  and  finally,  a  convincing  argument  is  a 
testimonial  which  shows  by  some  definite  test,  the  worth 
of  the  article  under  consideration,  or  by  the  regard  in 
which  it  is  held  by  other  users. 

Approached  from  the  angle  of  the  proposition,  your     The  talking 
talking  points  consist  of  prices,  which  may  be  low  or     points  of  this 
high,  but  must  certainly  be  mentioned  and  explained;     angle 
methods   of   ordering,   perhaps,   if   these  are  especially 
attractive;    the  kind  of  service  that  you  render;    and 
finally,  the  guarantee  which  assures  the  customer  that 
he  will  receive  what  he  wants  in  the  goods  themselves  or 
satisfaction  in  some  other  way  if  these  should  by  any 
chance  fail  to  meet  his  expectations. 

These  are  the  talking  points  which  you  can  use  in     One  place 
answering   the   inquiries   that   come   in  the  mail  from     where  results 
day  to  day.    In  writing  the  rephes  to  these  inquiries,  and     will  show 
endeavoring  to  make  customers  out  of  the  inquirers, 
you  are  putting  fire  under  your  boilers,  and  the  fact  of 
whether  you  have  good  or  bad  workers  or  a  good  or  bad 
system  in  the  correspondence  department,  determines 
how  hot  the  activity  in  your  shipping  room  becomes. 

Careless  rephes  will  lose  many  prospective  customers. 
Even  the  best  correspondent  wiU  get  tired  occasionally 
and  let  a  mediocre  letter  slip  through  to  the  mailing 
room  if  he  has  to  dictate  an  original  reply  to  every  in- 
quiry. But  when  he  has  once  made  himself  familiar  with 
paragraphs  prepared  in  advance  to  cover  all  points  that 
arise,  paragraphs  which  bear  the  stamp  of  approval  of  the 


15 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


"Tempera- 
ment" is  dis- 
counted at  once 


Ways  to  apply 
this  argument 


Making   this 
argument  work 
all  the  time 


house,  then  it  makes  little  difference  if  he  is  feeling  out 
of  sorts;  his  letter  as  it  goes  to  the  customer  will  be  sure 
to  carry  selling  power,  inspiration,  and  the  personality 
of  the  concern. 

The  series  of  sales  paragraphs  accompanying  this 
chapter  is  a  careful  digest,  and,  as  far  as  possible,  a  gen- 
eral adaptation  of  the  most  successful  paragraphs  used 
by  many  different  concerns  selUng  through  dealers  or 
at  retail,  and  each  illustrates  a  different  kind  of  argu- 
ment. The  best-informed  letter  writer  in  your  corre- 
spondence work,  therefore,  by  running  through  them 
and  noting  shght  changes  in  the  wide  margin,  can  at 
once  adapt  the  needed  paragraph  to  your  business.  In 
a  concern  carrying  many  varieties  of  goods,  the  size  of 
the  series  can  easily  and  quickly  be  enlarged  to  cover 
the  different  items,  by  working  in  additional  paragraphs 
under  each  logical  heading  here  laid  down. 

Take  as  an  example  the  headings  that  fall  under  the 
first  division — the  effect  of  the  article  when  in  use. 
First  of  these  is  the  argument,  "this  article  will  increase 
your  own  pleasure. " 

Applicable  to  many  kinds  of  articles,  this  argument 
is  especially  suited  to  the  so-called  luxuries  that  help  to 
bring  more  beauty  and  convenience  into  hfe.  It  is  the 
type  of  argument  that  may  be  appHed  to  a  piano,  when 
the  writer  suggests  the  pleasure  that  comes  from  the 
exquisite  tones  of  his  instrument;  to  a  book,  the  contents 
of  which  the  correspondent  will  describe  as  dehghting 
and  instructing  the  reader;  to  a  lamp,  a  kind  of  tea,  a 
kitchen  cabinet,  a  pair  of  sUppers,  an  automobile,  and 
hundreds  of  other  articles. 

Each  of  these  articles  effects  its  end  in  a  different  way, 
affords  a  different  kind  of  pleasure,  appeals  perhaps  to 
a  different  sense.  The  piano  appeals  to  the  love  of 
music,  the  automobile  to  the  love  of  comfort  or  con- 
venience or  speed.  Just  as  the  Morris  chair  manu- 
facturer does,  you  can  picture  your  prospect  making 
use  of  the  article  you  offer.  A  complete  sales  section 
for  your  paragraph  book  should  carry  one  specific  para- 
graph of  this  sort  for  each  standard  article  sold. 

This  same  apphcation  can  be  made  in  the  case  of 
other  kinds  of  sales  arguments  which  you  may  use.  Not 
all  articles,  for  instance,  will  appeal  to  the  prospect 
through  his  children;   though  on  some  items  this  is  the 


16 


List 

Too  Old 

Not  Well  Classified 

^ 

Mailing  Too  Late 

In  Plan        < 

Time 

Mailing  in  Dead  Season 
Mailing  Without  Tryout 

Slovenliness 

Stamping  Upside  Down 
Smearing  Envelop  in  Sealing 

Technical 

Words 

fmpersonal 
Over  familiar 
Apologetic 

FAULTS 

"Do  it  Now" 

TO  AVOID 
IN  FORM  ' 

In  Wording  < 

Trite  Forms  • 

"We  Beg  to  Advise" 

"We"  and  "1"  Rather  Than  "You" 

LETTERS 

Pretenses 

Untruths 

Exaggerating  Argument 
Providing  False  Inducements 

Urging  Replies,  Not  Orders 

Purpose 

Rousing  Interest  and  Not  Clinching  it 

Aim  Not  Clear 

f 

Poor  Quality 

Stationery 

Flashy  Colors  in  Printing 

In  Make-up  •( 

Envelops  That  Do  Not  Match  Letter 

Crowding 

Body 

Lack  of  Balance 

Margin 

FIGURE  6:  Although  the  use  of  paragraphs 
cuts  down  the  number  of  mediocre  letters  that 
may  slip  through  to  the  mailing  room,  a  good 
deal  of  care  has  to  be  taken,  however,  to  keep 


the  paragraphs  free  from  blunders.  This  chart 
points  out  some  of  the  dangers  it  will  pay  you 
to  watch.  Carelessness  in  plan,  in  wording  or  in 
make-up  will  spoil  an  otherwise  effective  letter. 


17 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Simply  adapt  strongest  possible  appeal.  Neither  will  the  money- 
the  argument  making  argument  serve  on  every  occasion,  nor  the 
like  this  physical  or  mental  appeals.    But  these  appeals  remain 

the  fundamental  ones  having  to  do  with  the  effect  of  the 
article,  and  one  of  them,  or  several,  can  be  adapted  to 
your  needs,  often  by  merely  changing  a  few  words  with 
a  pen  in  the  wide  margin  left  for  that  purpose. 

Arguments  classified  imder  "the  proposition"  come  up 
with  Httle  variation  in  every  business.    You  have  to 
talk  about  the  price  and  the  method  of  ordering;  if  you 
give  service  of  which  you  are  proud,  that  will  afford  you 
an  effective  talking  point;   and  you  must  face  or  hedge 
on    the    point    of    guaranteeing    satisfaction.    Possibly 
you  may  not  need  to  use  all  the  price  paragraphs — 
perhaps  your  goods  are  sold  at  uniformly  lower  prices 
than  anywhere  else,  and  you  will  have  no  need  to  explain 
This  may  help      that  the  best  is  cheapest,  regardless  of  price.    Perhaps, 
to  simplify  the       again,  you  sell  only  for  cash;  in  which  case  you  can  do 
work  further  away  with  three  out  of  the  four  *' methods  of  ordering" 

paragraphs.  These  points  you  can  quickly  check  over 
in  the  following  pages  to  suit  the  needs  of  your  own 
business;  but  the  big  outUnes  of  the  analysis  and,  in 
many  instances,  the  phrasing  will  serve  you  as  well  as 
they  have  in  the  original  letters. 

In  answering  letters  with  these  standard  paragraphs, 
the  correspondent  simply  jots  down  on  the  letter  or  on 
a  sHp  attached  to  it  the  numbers  of  the  correct  answering 
paragraphs.  When  these  have  a  space  left  for  an  in- 
sertion which  ties  the  reply  down  specifically  to  the  case 
in  point,  he  notes  after  the  number  the  three  or  four 
necessary  words.  Take  a  typical  example ,  which  may 
be  enUghtening,  from  the  experience  of  a  furniture  man- 
ufacturer who  sells  direct  to  consumers. 
Putting  the  A  prospect  writes  and  asks  about  a  Morris  chair 

principle  to  which  he  has  seen  at  a  friend's  house.    He  wants  to  know 

work  what  it  costs,  and  asks  if  he  can  have  one  sent  to  him 

on  approval.  The  logical  answer  is  first  to  thank  the 
prospect  for  his  interest,  next  tell  him  something  about 
the  mechanical  construction .  of  the  chair  itself,  then 
give  him  the  price,  followed  by  some  persuasive  selling 
talk;  finally,  it  is  necessary  to  tell  him  (if  this  happens 
to  be  the  case)  that  all  orders  without  exception  are  for 
cash  only;  and  in  the  close,  it  is  desirable  to  use  a  chncher 
that  urges  quick  decision. 


18 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


A  few  days'  use  of  the  paragraph  book  makes  the 
correspondent  so  famihar  with  his  range  of  paragraphs 
and  in  line  with  the  promptings  of  the  inquiry,  that  he 
is  enabled  to  ''dictate"  a  reply  instantly  by  pencihng 
this  notation  on  the  letter: 

31 Johnson;  an  Easy-back;  two;  chairs. 

410 

430 the  chair;  $18. 

400 

442 

81 

The  completed  letter  follows.  Note  that  paragraph 
410  in  this  letter  is  special,  being  the  description  of  the 
mechanical  make-up  of  the  chair  and  includes  all  the 
points  to  bring  out  about  the  chair.  By  similar  appli- 
cation you  can  at  once  put  the  paragraph  series  to  work 
in  your  own  business: 

Your  inquiry  reminds  me  of  something  one 
of  our  customers  said  the  other  day  when 
he  dropped  in  at  my  office:      "Johnson" —  I 
think  these  were  his  exact  words — "if 
everybody  knew  the  comfort  there  is  in  an 
Easy-back,   you  wouldn't  have  to  adver- 
tise."    This  man  had  bought  two  other 
different  kinds  of  chairs  before  he  found 
out  about  our  line,   and  he  knows  values 
and  styles  pretty  thoroughly. 

The  Easy-back  is  built  of  the  best  materi- 
als throughout.     You  can  secure  it  in  any 
finish,   to  suit  the  woodwork  of  your 
rooms,   with  rich,   upholstered  leather 
cushions  to  match.     A  special  patented  de- 
vice allows  you  to  adjust  the  back  to  any 
desired  position  while  you  are  sitting  in 
it,   simply  by  pressing  a  concealed  button. 
In  addition  there  is  a  book  and  magazine 
rack  on  the  side  of  each  arm;   and  also  an 
adjustable  footrest  which  can  be  fitted  in 
a  second  to  the  right  position  for  any 
person,   tall  or  short,   and  it  automati- 
cally moves  when  you  adjust  the  back. 


Could  anything 
he  more  simple? 


Additional 
words  can 
easily  be 
inserted 


This  paragraph 
covers  every 
point 


19 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  paragraph 
works  every 
day,  rain  or 
shine 


Delicate  hints 
like  this  are 
handled  uni- 
formly 


Our  price  for  the  chair  is  $18. 
The  Easy-back  is  one  of  those  pieces  of 
which  we  are  proud.      It  will  show  you  how 
to  spend  your  evenings  at  home  in  comfort. 
Many  a  restful  hour  will  you  spend  in  it, 
sitting  before  the  fire,   with  a  lamp  on 
the  table  at  your  side,   and  a  good  book 
in  your  hands.     The  long,   adjustable  lines 
fit  you  like  a  cushion,   and  afford  com- 
plete relaxation  and  restfulness.     What 
could  be  more  inviting  after  a  hard  day's 
work? 

We  do  business  on  a  very  narrow  margin  of 
profit.     For  this  reason  we  cannot  afford 
the  possibility  of  incurring  a  single  dol- 
lar's loss  on  bad  debts.     Our  invariable 
rule,    therefore,   is  to  require  cash  with 
the  order.     You  will  see  how  this  rule  is 
one  of  the  factors  that  makes  it  possible 
for  us  to  give  lower  prices  than  com- 
petitors. 

We  can  give  your  order  immediate  atten- 
tion,  and  only  await  your  decision  to  put 
ourselves  entirely  at  your  service. 

A  set  form  letter  might  easily  be  devised  to  cover 
inquiries  about  this  chair.  But  it  would  be  certain  to 
contain  some  matters  not  of  interest  to  the  inquirer. 

In  the  above  letter,  nothing  appears  which  the 
prospect  does  not  wish  to  know.  He  has  specifically 
inquired  about  practically  every  point  mentioned  in 
the  reply.  The  sales  talk  included  will  not  offend  him. 
A  form  letter  could  scarcely  compete  with  this  personal 
and  specific  appeal. 


20 


INDEX  TO  SALES  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 

PAGE 

Constant  use  of  this 

30 

Thanks  for  inquiry 

23 

index  will  help  you 

31 

Your  inquiry  reminds  me     . 

23 

to  memorize  the 

32 

Sending  requested  price  list 

23 

paragraph  numbers 

33 

Would  you  be  interested  in? 

23 

34 

You  would  benefit  from 

23 

35 

You  are  interested 

24 

36 

Did  you  receive  price  list?    . 

24 

37 

Are  you  getting  all  you  should? 

24 

38 

Startling,  to  win  attention   . 

24 

39-49      Use  these  numbers  for  special  opening  sales 

paragraphs  you  may  add    ...            24 

CLOSERS 

80 

Thanks  for  past  and  future  favors         .         .            25 

81 

Hope  for  favorable  reply 

25 

82 

Write,  whether  or  not  you  order 

25 

83 

Invitation  to  call 

25 

84 

Summing  up  arguments 

25 

85 

Order  blank  enclosed  . 

25 

86 

Send  trial  order  . 

25 

87 

Order  by  telephone 

25 

88 

Order  now 

26 

89-99      For  additional  paragraphs 

26 

THE  ARTICLE 

ESect 

400 

Increase  your  own  pleasure         ...            27 

401 

Increase  the  pleasure  of  someone  dear  to  you            27 

402 

Save  you  money        ....         .            27 

403 

Help  you  do  more  work     ....            28 

404 

Do  you  physical  good 

28 

405-409      For  additional  paragraphs    ...  28 
Description 

410  Actual  mechanical  details  ...  29 

411  We  will  not  stand  for  quality-cutting  .         .  29 

412  Qualifications  of  men  and  factories  making  .  29 

413  Result  of  years  of  labor      ....  30 

414  Can  be  used  anywhere;  and  by  anybody      .  30 

415  Educational  (for  article  perhaps  not  generally 

known)         ......  30 


21 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Constant  use  of  this 
index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


Descriptiori  (continued)  page 

416  Has  long  been  on  the  market      ...  31 

417  Reference  to  circular           ....  31 
418-419      For  additional  paragraphs    ...  31 

Testimonials 

420  In  the  article  itself — sample  sent,  and  how  to 

test 34 

421  Specific,  quoted 34 

422  Many  people  say 34 

423  Officially  approved  by  a  recognized  body     .  34 

424  Used  by  well-known  so-and-so    ...  35 

425  Reference  to  enclosed         ....  35 
426-429      For  additional  paragraphs    ...  35 


THE  PROPOSITION 

Price 

430  Simple  statement  of  . 

431  Buy  the  best,  it  is  cheapest 

432  Lower  than  elsewhere — reasons 

433  Lower  than  before 

434  Lower  than  will  be  later     . 

435  Includes  a  premium  . 
436-439      For  additional  paragraphs 

Method  of  Ordering 

440  Send  no  money,  we'll  ship  free  . 

441  Send  part  of  money  and  we'll  ship 

442  Send  all  money  with  order 

443  Monthly  payments    . 
444-449      For  additional  paragraphs    . 

Our  Service 

450  Prompt  delivery        .... 

451  We  will  help  you  order — tell  your  needs 

452  General  service  features 

453  Our  selection  is  large 

454-459      For  additional  paragraphs    . 

Guarantee 

460  General    ...... 

461  Absolutely  binding    .... 
462-499      For  additional  sales  paragraphs    . 


36 

36 
36 
36 
37 
37 
37 


38 

38 
38 
38 
39 


40 
40 
40 
41 
41 


42 
42 
42 


22 


SALES  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 

30  Thanks  for  Inquiry 

We  thank  you  for  your  inquiry  regarding  our 
(name  of  article). 

31  Your  Inquiry  Reminds  Me  '^ 

Your  inquiry  reminds  me  of  something  one  of  our 
customers  said  the  other  day  when  he  dropped 
in  at  my  office:  "(name  of  writer)" — I  think 
these  were  his  exact  words — "if  everybody  knew 
the  comfort  (genuine  value)  there  is  in  your 
(name  of  article),  you  wouldn't  have  to  adver- 
tise." This  man  had  bought  (number)  other 
different  kinds  of  (name  of  article)  before  he 
found  out  about  our  line,  and  he  knows  values 
and  styles  pretty  thoroughly. 

32  Sending  Requested  Price  List 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  comply  with  your  request  of 
(date).  We  are  sending  you  today  one  of  the 
latest  copies  of  our  (price  list  or  article 
requested),  in  order  that  it  may  reach  you 
promptly. 

33  Would  You  Be  Interested  In? 

If  you  were  sitting  in  the  Pullman  and  saw  a 
five-dollar  bill  under  the  seat,  you  would  be 
keenly  interested  in  seeing  whether  there  were 
any  more  in  the  same  place. 

34  You  Would  Benefit  from 

We  are  confident  that  you  would  find  great 
(pleasure  or  benefit)  in  a  (name  of  article). 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  tt 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  In  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


23 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In      35    yqu  Are  Interested 

Phrasing  Here 


You  will  be  interested  in  this  letter  for  more 
reasons  than  one.  It  contains  live  news  about 
a  live  subject. 

36  Did  You  Receive  Price  List? 

A  few  days  ago  we  mailed  you  our  (price  list, 
or  article  requested).  We  have  had  no  reply. 
Did  it  reach  you? 

37  Are  You  Getting  All  You  Should? 

Are  you  getting  all  the  (satisfaction  out  of 
life,  use  out  of  your  automobile,  and  so  forth) 
that  you  should? 

38  Startling,  to  Win  Attention 

About  that  (name  of  article)  you  were  going 
to  buy — 

39-49    Use  these  numbers  for  special  opening  sales  paragraphs  you  may  add 


24 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


CLOSERS  Note  Changes 

Phrasing  Here 

80  Thanks  for  Past  and  Future  Favors 

We  want  to  thank  you  for  the  interest  you  have 
already  shown,  and  will  spare  no  effort  to 
keep  our  future  relations  just  as  pleasant. 

81  Hope  for  Favorable  Reply 

We  can  give  your  order  immediate  attention,  and 
only  await  your  decision  to  put  ourselves 
entirely  at  your  service. 

82  Write,  Whether  or  Not  You  Order 

Please  write  us,  whether  you  order  now  or  not. 
You  are  sure  to  have  some  questions  you'd  like 
to  ask,  and  we  will  gladly  answer  them.  Let 
us  know  exactly  how  we  can  serve  you. 

83  Invitation  to  Call 

Call  and  see  us  the  first  chance  you  get.  You 
will  find  opportunities  and  bargains  here  that 
you  can't  find  anywhere  else. 

84  Summing  Up  Arguments 

Consider  the  attractiveness  of  our  prices,  the 
prompt  and  thorough  service  we  render,  the 
quality  of  our  goods  and  the  binding  nature  of 
our  guarantee,  and  send  us  your  order  today. 

85  Order  Blank  Enclosed 

For  your  convenience  we  are  enclosing  an  order 
blank,  which  you  can  fill  out  without  trouble 
and  mail  today. 

86  Send  Trial  Order 

Send  us  a  trial  order  by  return  mail.  Then  you 
can  see  for  yourself  that  all  we  offer  is  true. 

87  Order  by  Telephone 

Call  (telephone  number)  and  give  us  your  order 
without  trouble  or  delay.   It  will  receive  the 


25 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  Same  careful  attention  as  if  you  visited  us 

PhrasinaHere  ^^    perSOn. 

88    Order  Now 

The  time  to  order  is  now,  while  you  have  the 
matter  before  you  and  can  do  so  in  a  moment. 
May  we  look  for  your  letter  in  the  return  mail? 

89-99    For  additional  paragraphs 


26 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


EFFECT  OF  THE  ARTICLE  T.s^T^Z '" 

400  Increase  Your  Own  Pleasure 

The  Easy-back  is  one  of  those  pieces  of  which 
we  are  proud.  It  will  show  you  how  to  spend 
your  evenings  at  home  in  comfort.  Many  a 
restful  hour  will  you  spend  in  it,  sitting 
before  the  fire,  with  a  lamp  on  the  table  at 
your  side,  and  a  good  book  in  your  hands.  The 
long,  adjustable  lines  fit  you  like  a  cushion, 
and  afford  complete  relaxation  and  restful- 
ness.  What  could  be  more  inviting  after  a 
hard  day's  work? 

401  Increase  \he  Pleasure  of  Someone  Dear  to  You 

Your  children  are  your  dearest  possessions; 
you  want  them  to  have  the  best  that  money  can 
buy,  and  to  be  the  healthiest  and  happiest  you 
can  make  them.  Remember  how,  when  you  were  a 
youngster,  you  were  always  wanting  something 
that  would  "go"?  Our  Red  Major  Wagon  is 
solving  the  problem  for  hundreds  of  boys  and 
girls  in  city  and  country.  A  child  six  years 
old  can  sit  in  the  seat  in  this  neat  little 
wagon,  and  pedal  and  steer  at  the  same  time; 
and  the  seat  is  big  enough  to  "hold  double." 
Out  in  the  fresh  air  from  morning  till  night, 
your  youngsters  will  play  "choo  choo"  with  it, 
and  willingly  use  it  to  run  a  dozen  errands  a 
day  for  mother. 

402  Save  You  Money 

We  promise  you  an  actual  saving  of  10%  on  your 
carbon  bills  when  you  adopt  Texcarbo  through- 
out your  office,  no  matter  which  priced  paper 
you  buy.  Say  you  have  twenty  stenographers, 
and  each  one  uses  100  sheets  of  carbon  paper  a 
month,  at  60  cents  for  100  sheets:  $12  a  month 
at  the  old  rate;  $10.80  when  you  use  Texcarbo 
— a  saving  of  $1.20  a  month,  or  $14.40  a  year. 
Fit  the  formula  to  your  own  office  needs,  and 
figure  out  just  how  much  you  will  save  with 
Texcarbo. 


27 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


The  Dixagraph  is  always  ready.   With  it  stand- 
ing beside  your  desk  from  morning  till  night, 
you  don't  have  to  wait  until  the  stenographer 
comes,  or  while  she  sharpens  her  pencil  or 
gets  a  new  note  book.  The  little,  irritating 
delays  are  done  away  with,  as  well  as  the 
small  distractions  that  so  hinder  effective 
work.  You  can  concentrate  wholly  on  what  you 
want  to  say,  without  having  to  think  of  three 
or  four  other  things.   The  Dixagraph  will  go 
as  fast  as  you  do.  It  will  add  an  extra  hour 
to  your  day,  without  keeping  you  any  longer  at 
the  office. 

404    Do  You  Physical  Good 

You  know  how  it  is  at  the  office.  Some  days 
you  feel  like  "eating"  work;  and  then  again 
things  don't  seem  to  "go"  at  all.  You  ought 
to  be  in  tiptop  condition  all  the  time.  The 
size  of  your  pay  check  depends  on  it.  Put 
aside  fifteen  minutes  every  morning  and  use 
the  Developer.  It  sends  the  blood  tingling 
through  your  veins  and  makes  you  feel  as  if 
you  had  just  come  from  a  vigorous  plunge  in 
salt  water.   It  keeps  your  body  fit,  and  that 
means  that  your  mind  is  fresh,  keen  and  alert. 


405-409    For  additional  paragraphs 


28 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


DESCRIPTION    OF   THE    ARTICLE  Note  changes  In 

Phrasing  Here 

410  Actual  Mechanical  Details 

The  Easy-back  is  built  of  the  best  materials 
throughout.  You  can  secure  it  in  any  finish, 
to  suit  the  woodwork  of  your  rooms,  with  rich, 
upholstered  leather  cushions  to  match.  A 
special  patented  devifce  allows  you  to  adjust 
the  back  to  any  desired  position  while  you  are 
sitting  in  it,  simply  by  pressing  a  concealed 
button.   In  addition  there  is  a  book  and  maga- 
zine rack  on  the  side  of  each  arm;  and  also  an 
adjustable  footrest  which  can  be  fitted  in  a 
second  to  the  right  position  for  any  person, 
tall  or  short,  and  it  automatically  moves  when 
you  adjust  the  back. 

41 1  We  Will  Not  Stand  for  Quality-Cutting 

When  we  started  in  business  we  were  thoroughly 
convinced  that  the  public  cares  as  much  for 
quality  as  for  price.  With  that  belief  behind 
us,  "quality  first"  was  the  motto  drummed  into 
the  ears  of  every  man  in  our  employ.  We  were 
right.  The  public  does  want  quality — you  want 
quality  in  whatever  you  buy.  And  because  we 
have  constantly  kept  this  fact  in  mind,  the 
(name  of  company)  is  today  recognized  by 
everybody  as  the  "quality  house." 

412  Qualifications  of  Men  and  Factories  Making 

We  wish  you  could  go  through  our  factories  and 
see  for  yourself  just  what  we  mean  by  "Perfec- 
tion Quality."  It  is  not  an  empty  catchword 
that  we  use  when  selling  goods  and  forget  when 
shipping  them  out.  You  should  see  the  pains 
with  which  every  process  is  handled.  It  is  the 
attention  which  we  give  to  the  little  details, 
as  well  as  the  big  points,  that  not  only  gives 
our  suits  the  greatest  utility  possible,  but 
adds  also  a  note  of  distinction  which  no  other 
ready-to-wear  clothing  manufacturer  has 
equaled.  The  men  in  the  factory  are  all 
skilled  workmen,  highly  paid,  and  they  feel  a 


^ 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


ph!asiSrHere '"  peFSonal   responsibility  for  every  piece  of 

work  they  turn  out. 

41 3  Result  of  Years  of  Labor 

It  has  always  been  our  ambition  to  produce  a 
varnish  that  will  not  check,  chip,  or  spot. 
With  a  view  to  finding  such  a  varnish,  expert 
chemists  were  at  work  in  our  laboratories  for 
ten  years  before  they  finally  succeeded  in 
hitting  upon  the  correct  formula.  Besides  the 
wages  of  these  high-priced  experts,  we  spent 
thousands  of  dollars  helping  them  in  their 
investigations.  Time  and  again  they  seemed  to 
have  arrived  at  the  solution  of  their  problem, 
but  always  our  rigid  tests  picked  some  flaw — 
until  they  hit  on  the  formula  for  Right-Grade 
Varnish. 

414  Can  Be  Used  Anywhere;  and  by  Anybody 

You  can  use  the  Electroglobe  in  your  living 
rooms  and  bed  rooms.  It  is  absolutely  safe, 
healthful  and  cleanly,  and  convenient  beyond 
every  other  kind  of  lighting  fixture.  You  can 
use  it  in  the  barn,  granary,  or  mill,  and  feel 
certain  of  the  total  absence  of  fire  risk. 
You  can  use  it  out  of  doors,  for  it  cannot 
blow  out.  You  can  use  it  anywhere,  under  any 
circumstances.  And  its  operation  is  so  simple 
that  children  of  five  can  work  with  it  as  well 
as  grown  persons. 

415  Educational  (for  Article  Perhaps  Not  Generally  Known) 

Most  of  the  methods  of  garbage  disposal  that 
have  been  tried  are  makeshifts  rather  than 
logical  attempts  at  a  correct  solution  of  the 
problem.  The  old-fashioned  wagon  collector, 
for  instance,  is  a  nauseating  sight  on  the 
streets,  and  he  is  unheal thful  as  well,  for  he 
carries  germs  and  disease,  and  scatters  them 
wherever  he  goes.  Burning  is  the  method  which 
offers  most  advantages  and  practically  no 
objections.  With  the  Smith  Waste  Destroyer 
there  is  no  longer  any  need  of  the  city 


30 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


collector  and  the  hideous-smelling  can  on  the       KLnJ^e '" 

back  porch.   The  Destroyer  is  installed  in  your 

house  just  like  a  furnace.   You  throw  your 

garbage  in  as  you  would  coal  into  the  furnace, 

and  all  you  have  to  do  is  remove  a  few  ashes 

once  a  week  or  so.   There  is  absolutely  no 

disagreeable  odor. 

416  Has  Long  Been  on  the  Market 

It  is  now  40  years  since  we  began  selling 
Virginia  Condensed  Fruit  Extracts.  Among  all 
our  competitors,  we  alone  have  behind  us  a 
record  like  this — 40  years  of  continuous 
satisfaction  and  quality-giving  service.  Do 
you  for  a  minute  think  that  we  could  have  con- 
tinued to  exist  and  thrive  in  the  face  of  the 
bitter  competition  we  have  had  to  meet  if  our 
products  had  not  always  been  the  very  best  on 
the  market? 

417  Reference  to  Circular 

For  a  complete  description  of  (name  of 
article)  take  a  careful  look  through  the  cir- 
cular which  I  am  enclosing  (sending).  It  will 
help  you  to  decide  exactly  what  fits  your 
needs,  and  will  give  you  thorough  information 
about  quality,  prices,  and  the  satisfaction 
felt  by  representative  users. 

41 8-41 9    For  additional  paragraphs 


31 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


32 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


33 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  TESTIMONIALS 

Phrasing  Here 

420  In  the  Article  Itself— Sample  Sent,  and  How  to  Test 

Try  the  sample  which  we  are  sending  you.  Test 
it  in  any  way  you  wish.  Put  it  to  the  severest 
trial  it  could  possibly  be  expected  to  go 
through  in  actual  use.  Let  us  know  the  results 
if  they  are  in  the  least  unsatisfactory  to 
you.   The  finished  article  which  you  buy  is 
the  same  as  the  sample.  Both  will  stand  up 
under  the  hardest  tests  you  wish  to  devise.  We 
know,  because  we  have  put  this  product  to  the 
trial.   If  we  had  not,  we  should  not  dare  ask 
you  to. 

421  Specific,  Quoted 

You  will  want  to  know  what  (name  and  title  of 
man)  thinks  of  our  (name  of  article).  In 
placing  his  (second,  third)  order  of  the  year, 
he  says:  (Quote  the  testimonial). 

422  Many  People  Say 

People  who  have  used  our  (name  of  article)  are 
enthusiastic  in  their  praise  of  it.  We  have 
received  many  letters  from  them,  telling  how 
they  have  enjoyed  (been  benefited  by)  its  use. 
If  we  were  to  print  all  these  letters  and  send 
them  to  you,  you  would  have  a  big  book.  Ask 
one  of  our  customers.  There  are  a  dozen  of 
them  near  you. 

423  Officially  Approved  by  a  Recognized  Body 

Reorganization  of  office  methods  recently 
brought  the  Kansas  Railroad  Company  to  a  con- 
sideration of  various  makes  of  adding 
machines.  After  a  thorough  examination  and 
trial,  not  only  of  the  Christy  machine  but 
also  of  the  half  dozen  best-known  competing 
makes,  the  purchasing  agent  of  the  company 
declared  the  Christy  machine  best  from  every 
point  of  view — quality  of  work,  speed,  dura- 
bility, ease  of  operation,  price.  As  a  result 
of  this  trial,  200  adding  machines  already 


34 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


owned  by  the  Kansas  Railroad  Company  and  used   JhlasiSJZre '" 
in  their  various  offices  have  been  scrapped 
and  replaced  by  175  Christy  machines,  which 
will  perform  all  the  work  formerly  done  on  the 
other  machines. 

424  Used  by  Weil-Known  So-and-So 

The  best  people  use  the  best  articles.  You 
will  want  to  know  that  Jackson's  Boxed  Cube 
Sugar  is  used  by  the  Murray,  Fifth  Avenue, 
Euclid,  and  Broadway  Hotels,  as  well  as  by  the 
University,  City,  Taylor  and  Ocean  Beach  Clubs 
and  over  300  other  large  hotels,  restaurants 
and  clubs  in  your  city.  Twenty-five  of  the 
railroad  lines  in  this  country  and  many  boat 
lines  use  Jackson's  Sugar  exclusively  in  their 
dining  service. 

425  Reference  to  Enclosed 

Look  at  the  facsimile  letters  we  have 
enclosed.  These  are  samples  of  the  kind  of 
appreciations  that  come  to  us  in  the  mail 
nearly  every  day.  Read  what  the  people  who 
have  used  our  (name  of  article)  have  to  say. 
When  you  have  tried  it,  you  will  be  just  as 
well  satisfied  as  they  are. 

426-429    For  additional  paragraphs 


36 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  CHanaes  in  JHE    PROPOSITION 

430  Simple  Statement  of  the  Price 

Our  price  for  (name  of  article)  is  (amount). 

431  Buy  the  Best,  It  Is  Cheapest 

You  can  buy  cheaper  goods  than  our  (name  of 
article),  but  you  cannot  buy  better.  We  freely 
admit  that  you  will  pay  a  few  cents  more  in 
first  cost  for  our  goods;  but  in  final  cost 
you  will  save  many  dollars.  The  wear  and  tear 
that  you  should  get  cannot  be  had  from  a 
cheaply  made  article.  Buy  the  best  and  avoid 
first  cost  pitfalls.  Save  the  repair  money 
that  yon  will  inevitably  lose  if  you  buy 
cheaply  made  goods.  Get  the  satisfaction  that 
comes  when  you  know  you  have  the  very  best 
article  that  can  be  bought. 

432  The  Price  Is  Lower  Than  Elsewhere — Reasons 

Our  prices  are  low  because  of  the  peculiarly 
favorable  location  of  our  factory.  We  are 
close  to  the  sources  of  our  raw  materials;  and 
are  able  to  draw  on  the  labor  of  the  best 
skilled  workers  in  the  country.  Moreover, 
there  are  five  steam  railroads,  an  electric 
line,  and  three  boat  lines  accessible  from  our 
wareroom.  These  are  the  reasons  why  you  can 
get  unequaled  qualities  at  unrivaled  prices 
by  buying  from  us.  .   ■ 

433  The  Price  Is  Lower  Than  Before 

In  buying  this  (name  of  article)  you  get 
exactly  the  same  article  at  (new  price)  as  was 
formerly  sold  at  (old  price).  Not  a  single 
.  detail  has  been  changed.  The  articles  are 
identical  in  every  respect.  We  are  able  to 
make  this  lower  price  now  because  the  manufac- 
turer has  lowered  his  prices  to  us;  and  rather 
than  keep  the  difference  as  extra  profit  for 
ourselves,  we  are  going  to  give  our  customers 
the  entire  benefit  of  this  cut  in  the  price. 


36 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


434  The  Price  Is  Lower  Than  Will  Be  Later  ^°*«  .^"^^"fl"'  '" 

Phrasing  Here 

Now  is  the  time  to  buy.   Prices  are  rapidly- 
going  up.  These  properties  are  the  choice 
residence  sites  of  the  South  Shore.  They  are 
in  big  demand.   We  still  have  lots  cheaper 
than  you  can  secure  them  from  any  other 
dealer,  but  we  shall  be  forced  to  raise  our 
prices  on  June  1  at  the  latest.  Buy  now,  and 
take  advantage  of  the  profits  that  advancing 
prices  will  bring  to  every  purchaser. 

435  The  Price  Includes  a  Premium 

Not  only  do  you  get  the  (name  of  article)  for 
the  purchase  price,  but  you  will  also  get  a 
(name  of  premium) ,  which  we  are  giving  away 
absolutely  free  to  our  customers  who  send  in 
their  orders  now.  This  is  a  special  induce- 
ment only,  not  a  regular  offer,  as  the  (name 
of  premium)  is  so  expensive  that  we  cannot 
afford  to  give  it  away  for  more  than  a  limited 
time.  Order  at  once,  therefore,  if  you  want 
to  be  one  of  those  who  benefit  by  this  special 
offer. 

436-439    For  additional  paragraphs 


37 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  METHOD    OF   ORDERING 

Phrasing  Here 

440  Send  No  Money,  We'll  Ship  Free 

We  do  not  ask  you  to  decide  about  buying  now. 
You  can  do  that  later.  Mail  the  special  exam- 
ination card  and  on  will  come  the  (name  of  ar- 
ticle) all  charges  prepaid.  Then  after  six 
days'  examination — after  you  have  had  a  chance 
to  try  it  out — if  it  is  not  all  we  say  and 
more,  send  it  back  at  our  expense.  We'll  pay 
the  charges  both  ways.  Can  we  give  you  any 
stronger  evidence  of  our  own  faith  in  the 
quality  of  our  goods? 

441  Send  Part  of  Money  and  We'll  Ship 

Send  us  only  (amount)  and  we  will  send  you  the 
(name  of  article)  for  examination  in  your  own 
home.  Use  it  for  two  weeks  just  as  if  it  were 
entirely  your  own.  If  at  the  end  of  that  time 
you  are  not  completely  satisfied,  send  it  back 
to  us  at  our  expense  and  we  will  refund  the 
amount  you  have  paid.  If  you  are  satisfied, 
mail  us  the  balance  (amount)  due.  We  are  cer- 
tain you  will  be  satisfied.  If  we  were  not 
— if  the  satisfaction  of  many  buyers  had  not 
made  us  confident — we  should  never  dare  to 
make  such  a  liberal  offer. 

442  Send  All  Money  with  Order 

We  do  business  on  a  very  narrow  margin  of 
profit.  For  this  reason  we  cannot  afford  the 
possibility  of  incurring  a  single  dollar's 
loss  on  bad  debts.  Our  invariable  rule, 
therefore,  is  to  require  cash  with  the  order. 
You  will  see  how  this  rule  is  one  of  the  fac- 
tors that  makes  it  possible  for  us  to  give 
lower  prices  than  competitors. 

443  Monthly  Payments 

If  there  is  any  reason  at  all  why  you  do  not 
want  to  pay  the  entire  sum  now,  we  shall  be 
very  glad  to  have  you  take  advantage  of  our 
monthly  payment  plan.  You  can  pay  10%  down 


38 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


when  you  get  the  goods,  and  the  rest  in  month-  ?hIasin!''K '" 
ly  instalments  practically  as  large  or  small 
as  you  choose.  Interest  at  6%  is  charged  only 
on  the  unpaid  balance,  and  rapidly  decreases 
with  every  payment  which  you  make.  The  larger 
the  monthly  payments,  of  course,  the  more  rap- 
idly does  the  interest  charge  decrease. 


444.449    For  additional  paragraphs 


39 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  OUR    SERVICE 

Phrasing  Here 

450  Prompt  Delivery 

You  will  get  your  goods  as  fast  as  the  rail- 
road can  bring  them  to  you.  There  will  be  no 
delay  in  our  wareroom.  We  make  a  special 
point  of  keeping  on  hand  a  full  stock  of  every 
line  we  carry,  and  our  methods  of  packing  and 
shipping  have  been  studied  and  standardized 
for  prompt,  safe  deliveries.   Only  the  most 
unexpected  circumstances  can  keep  us  from 
filling  your  order  the  same  day  it  is  re- 
ceived. 

451  We  Will  Help  You  Order— Tell  Your  Needs 

Some  days  ago  a  man  wrote  and  told  us  that  he 
couldn't  send  us  his  order  for  a  certain  arti- 
cle because  he  couldn't  figure  out  the  right 
amount  to  fit  his  needs.   If  that  is  your  fix, 
or  if  there  is  anything  at  all  about  our  goods 
or  our  methods  of  doing  business  that  you 
would  like  to  know,  don't  hesitate  to  write  to 
our  service  department.  We  have  established 
this  department  for  the  sole  purpose  of  help- 
ing our  friends.  Whatever  it  is  that  you  want 
to  know,  we  will  do  our  best  to  serve  you;  and 
we  have  a  large  mass  of  material  at  hand  for 
that  purpose.  Don't  think  that  because  you 
ask  us  questions  you  have  to  buy.  You  can  ask 
a  dozen  if  you  want  to,  and  we  will  answer- 
them  all,  whether  you  give  us  an  order  for  a 
single  dollar's  worth  of  goods  or  not. 

452  General  Service  Features 

Service  has  been  one  of  the  factors  which  we 
have  developed  to  a  high  point  during  our  many 
years'  experience.  Every  detail  of  our  work 
will  please  you.  We  give  the  most  careful  at- 
tention to  your  order,  from  the  time  it  is  re- 
ceived in  the  mailing  room  until  the  goods  are 
on  the  shipping  platform.  And  our  attention 
does  not  stop  there.  If  anything  in  the  least 
dissatisfies  you,  we  are  always  ready  to  in- 
vestigate and  set  the  matter  right. 


40 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


453    Our  Selection  Is  Large  Note  Changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

When  you  buy  from  us,  you  have  a  wonderful 
range  of  articles  to  select  from.   We  carry 
low-priced  goods,  fit  for  the  humblest  pocket- 
book  or  the  simplest  taste,  and  high-priced 
goods  that  will  satisfy  the  richest  and  most 
elaborate  fancy.   Whether  you  want  to  pay  $1 
or  $100,  you  will  find  something  that  suits 
you  in  our  stock. 

454-459    For  additional  paragraphs 


41 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In  GUARANTEE 

Phrasing  Here 

460  General 

Remember  that  the  very  life  of  our  business 
depends  on  giving  absolute  satisfaction  as  to 
prices,  quality,  promptness,  safe  delivery, 
close  attention  to  details,  and  the  fair 
treatment  of  every  customer.  So  we  guarantee 
you  satisfaction. 

461  Absolutely  Binding 

Our  guarantee  is  absolutely  binding.  There 
are  no  "conditions,"  no  "if's  and  and's"  about 
it.  If  our  goods  fail  to  give  the  service  we 
pledge  them  to  give,  if  they  don't  last  the 
length  of  time  we  claim  they  will,  we  will  let 
you  be  judge  of  what  is  a  satisfactory  settle- 
ment. Could  you  ask  any  concern  to  do  more? 

462-499    For  additional  sales  paragraphs 


SALES-PRODUCING  PARAGRAPHS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


43 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


44 


CHAPTER  III 


STANDARD  LETTERS  THAT  MAKE  SALES 


Letters  are  one  of  the  recognized  mediums  for  the 
sales  department's  use  in  almost  every  kind  of  business 
— factory,  jobbing  house,  and  local  store.  And  in  sell- 
ing, except  where  the  individual  order  is  large  and  the 
"leads"  definite,  "letters"  means  form  letters.  Obvi- 
ously, however,  every  sales  letter  must  be  written  to  fit 
its  errand.  Standard  forms  cannot  be  laid  out  for  mis- 
cellaneous use. 

Yet  nothing  interests  a  sales  or  advertising  manager 
more  than  to  get  hold  of  successful  order-bringing  form 
letters  and  the  returns  they  have  actually  scored.  For 
the  sales  letter  writer  who  works  hour  after  horn*  upon 
a  page  which  may  head  the  list  of  profit  makers  in  his 
concern  for  years  thereafter,  there  are  in  these  tested 
paragraphs  inspiration,  sense  of  direction,  many  a  definite 
help  in  the  way  of  strong  phrasing,  a  development  of 
truer  feehng  for  what  is  magnetic  and  salesmanlike. 

Further  than  this,  the  human  nature  behind  the 
orders  to  which  different  classes  of  buyers  are  persuaded 
by  various  sales  letters  is  the  same.  Analysis  shows 
that  hke  appMcation  of  principles,  if  not  the  same  phras- 
ing, will  strengthen  letters  even  on  propositions  as 
different  as  dealer  and  consumer  selling.  The  first  para- 
graph, for  example,  will  be  either  a  reply  to  an  inquiry  or 
some  approach  so  interesting  as  to  get  attention  for  the 
unsohcited  sales  letter  that  goes  as  the  first  move  in 
selling  to  a  complete  mailing  fist.  Such  analysis  can  be 
carried  throughout  the  entire  letter,  thus  enabling  the 
correspondent  to  get  ideas  for  his  own  work  on  methods 
of  approach,  phrases  that  deepen  interest,  plans  to  arouse 
curiosity,  samples  of  candor  and  convincing  description, 
methods  of  explanation  and  proof,  introductory  phrasing, 
testimonials,  methods  of  handling  price  and  payments, 
approval  offers,  premiums,  "do-it-now"  clauses,  and 
tricks  of  easy  reply. 


Letters  that 
"pay  ouV 


They  get  under 
the  skin  of  the 
prospect 


45 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


The  letters  that 
bring  home  the 
bacon 


Compare  your 
proposition 
with  these  four 
points 


An  interesting 
experiment 


In  a  similar  way,  a  sales  letter  which  has  been  proved 
out  is,  as  a  unit,  an  inspiring  example  of  selhng  spirit; 
and  a  number  of  seUing  form  letters  (page  49)  teach  how 
the  letter  may  be  made  to  stir  the  reader's  appetite  for 
the  printed  information  that  is  enclosed  and  through 
just  what  steps  in  making  the  sale  each  letter  that  is 
used  should  advance. 

Selhng  by  letter  in  practically  all  businesses  falls 
under  one  of  four  headings.  Whatever  you  are  offering, 
you  are  (1)  attempting  to  educate  your  hst  to  buy  yoiu" 
product  as  a  means  of  getting  away  from  some  disad- 
vantage to  which  they  have  been  bhnd;  or  (2)  you  are 
coming  forward  with  a  new  product,  little  troubled  as 
yet  by  competition;  a  product  which  people  have  come 
to  want,  but  have  not  known  where  to  find;  or  (3)  you 
are  asking  a  man  to  go  out  of  his  way  or  change  a  buying 
habit  to  purchase  from  you  rather  than  from  a  com- 
petitor; or  (4)  you  are  offering  something  which  most 
people  are  too  apt  to  buy  carelessly  and  offhand  with- 
out much  thought  as  to  brand  or  source. 

If  the  sales  letter  writer  will  study  his  proposition 
and  decide  in  which  of  these  classes  it  falls  as  regards 
the  average  reader  he  is  addressing,  he  can  then,  by 
reference  to  successful  sales  letters  of  that  type — per- 
suasive, descriptive,  logical,  or  suggestive  (Figure  7) 
at  once  see  one  successful  method  of  wording  a  propo- 
sition which  at  bottom  is  identical  with  his  own. 

Two  propositions  occasionally  are  so  nearly  alike 
from  this  point  of  view,  that  the  phrasing  which  sold  for 
one  can  in  a  few  minutes  be  adapted  actually  to  sell  the 
other.  An  advertising  manager  recently  became  in- 
terested in  an  experiment  of  this  sort.  He  had  noticed 
a  10-inch,  three-column  newspaper  advertisement  which 
in  wonderfully  persuasive  language  suggested  to  home 
owners  the  purchase  of  an  article  which  the  average 
man  has  always  done  without  and  is  not  likely  to  consider 
buying,  on  his  own  initiative.  The  advertisement 
opened  with  a  headhne  which  brought  out  in  a  striking 
way  the  discomfort  and  disadvantage  of  doing  without. 
In  a  half  dozen  short  paragraphs,  the  writer  had  played 
upon  this  feehng  of  disadvantage,  magnifying  it  phrase 
by  phrase  until  at  the  easy-inquiry  paragraph  a  large 
percentage  of  his  readers  had  actually  taken  down  the 
telephone  receiver  and  made  the  first  step  in  buying. 


46 


r- 

When  offering  your 

reader  an  article  he 

has  never  considered 

buying  and  has  felt  no 

keen  need  for 

— 

Make  him  restless  of 

the  disadvantages  the 

article  will  relieve 

Write  to  contrast 
and  inspire 
see  series  11 

- 

When  offering  a  new 

article  to  fill  a 

keenly  felt  want 

— 

Convince  your  reader 

that  you  really  have 

what  will  meet  his 

desire 

Write  to  describe 
and  convince 
see  series  ill 

Planning 
a  sales 
'     letter 

— 

When  selling  in 

competition  with  like 

products  and  asking 

your  reader  to  change 

his  buying  habits 

— 

Show  why  your 

product  or  service 

makes  the  change 

worth  while 

Write  to  reason 
and  prove 
see  series  1 

- 

When  selling  against 

competition  to  a  reader 

who  buys  without 

conscious  preference 

— 

Suggest  your  brand 

as  a  matter  of 

course 

Write  to  emphasize 

a  name  and  make 

buying  from  you  easy 

see  series  IV-VII 

FIGURE  7:     A  chart  like  this  will  help  you  and   third  columns  will  show  what  style  of 

plan  your  sales  letters.     When  you've  once  argument  to  adopt.     The   rest   is   of  course 

decided  to  what  class  your  product  belongs  by  simple.   When  you  have  used  a  chart  like  this, 

checking  it  up  in  the  first  column,  the  second  you'll  see  how  much  easier  it  makes  your  work. 


LETTER  TITLE  ^^|4i.c^^^-^^/^3  6 o  PROPOSITION        v^-^^x^^    TEST  DATE     'A//^ 

LETTER 
KEY 

TERRITORY 

SIZE  OF 
LIST 

LIST 

NUMBER 

KIND  OF 
ORDER 

DATE 

lo 

II 

1 

12 

13 

H 

i-i 

/6 

TOTAL 

LATER 
RETURNS 

23.^^^ 

iThiaM^o 

yp/OOO 

J6Z) 

-€ 

NUMBER 
OF  ORDERS 

2 

3 

V 

S. 

3 

1 

/ 

/6 

30  V 

" 

1 

Z 

/ 

3 

X 

1 

/  o 

sf-.r. 

" 

/ 

1 

^ 

zr 

INQUIRIES 

LJ  '/iaSf'     M.JL.tL^.^'-eXZ.is-^      -IM^-T-  ^G^ 

NUMBER 

1 

5 

1 

1 

5- 

/-e^'t.'wi^    /Ct"  -^KjoJLP     cLti-tjj-i^j 

" 

1 

/ 

a 

1 

/ 

6 

n                           ^ 

'• 

1 

X 

1 

3 

7 

3-      / 

JS' 

„ 

L 

FIGURE  8:  The  one  sure  test  of  a  sales 
letter  is  obviously  the  number  of  orders  it 
pulls.  Results  recorded  on  cards  like  this  will 
quickly  indicate  which  letters  are  really  the 


successful  ones.  Then  an  analysis  of  these 
letters  will  bring  out  the  winning  points. 
These  may  then  be  standardized  and  form  the 
basis  for  other  sales  letters,  equally  successful. 


47 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Perhaps  this  The    advertising    manager    investigated    this    copy, 

will  work  for         found  it  successful,  and  changing  a  word  here  and  there 
you,  too  adapted  it  into  a  letter  meant  to  make  the  reader  feel 

the  disadvantage  of  doing  without  an  entirely  different 
product  v/hich  he  had  never  planned  to  buy  and  for  which 
mentally  he  had  never  set  aside  funds.  Both  proposi- 
tions were  in  the  same  class.  The  logic  of  the  appeal 
was  easily  turned  to  the  new  use  and  the  letter  brought 
retmns  above  the  average. 

This  was,  of  course,  merely  an  interesting  experiment. 
Every  proposition  deserves  to  have  its  sales  literature 
tailor-made.  The  experiment  does,  however,  suggest 
in  a  novel  way  how  Hke  in  their  true  nature,  as  good 
salesmanship  analyzes  them,  are  propositions  seemingly 
quite  different.  For  this  reason,  in  the  following  pages 
there  have  been  gathered  10  actual  sales  letters  which 
have  made  good  and  the  arguments  advanced.  While 
the  statements  made  in  the  letters  cannot  be  vouched 
for,  the  letters  themselves  are  reproduced  as  successful 
letters  which  other  concerns  have  found  profitable. 


48 


ADAMANT  CEMENT  COMPANY 

ROCKLAND,  OHIO 


Mr.  E.  F.  Eastman 
Watkins,  N.   Y. 

Dear  Sir: 

Coming  down  to  the  office  the  other  morning  I  talked 
with  a  man  who's  made  quite  a  fortune  and  he  told  me 
how  he  did  it.  I  thought  right  away  that  you  would 
like  to  know,  too,  because  I  can  tell  you  just  how 
to  do  what  he  did. 

He  said,  "Wayne,  I  saved  twenty- five  cents  out  of 
every  dollar  made."  Now  it  may  have  been  hard  sled- 
ding for  him  to  do  that,  but  I  can  show  you  how  to 
do  it  and  have  just  as  much  to  spend  as  now  —  then 
it's  easy. 

You  can  do  it  by  using  Adamant  Slag  and  Sand  —  they 
increase  profits  twenty  per  cent  on  your  concrete 
work  —  save  twenty-five  cents  for  you  on  every  dollar. 

Adamant  Slag  can  do  this:  first,  because  it's  twenty- 
five  per  cent  lighter  than  stone.   The  cost  of  the 
entire  job  drops  twenty-five  per  cent  when  you  use 
our  Slag. 

Second,  because  it's  rough  and  porous  —  the  cement 
and  slag  sand  can  grip  it  with  a  hold  that  never 
gives  up.  There  are  no  cleavage  directions  in  slag 
concrete  and  it  will  never  crack. 

Third,  because  slag  is  absolutely  fireproof,  since 
every  burning  element  has  been  taken  out  of  Adamant 
Slag  by  heat  so  terrific  that  the  Slag  once  ran  in 
a  molten  mass. 

To  get  the  "how"  back  of  these  increased  profits, 
without  obligating  yourself  in  the  least,  simply 
fill  out  the  enclosed  card  and  get  it  in  today's 

mail  a  scratch  of  the  pen  will  bring  you  prices, 

freight  rates,  samples  —  and  a  word  or  two  which  is 
worth  having  on  your  desk.   Mail  it  now. 

Yours  very  truly, 

F.  C.  Wayne 


49 


INCINERATORS,  INC. 

SCHENECTADY,  N.  Y. 


Mr.  L.  0.  Beeman 
19  Gramercy  Park 
New  York  City 

Dear  Sir: 

In  family  residences  in  three  short  blocks  on  Fifth 
avenue  there  are  thirty- two  White  Ash  Incinerators. 

Thirty-two  receptacles  have  been  banished  from  the 
thirty-two  kitchens  in  these  homes  and  all  waste 
matter  is  finally  destroyed  where  it  originates,  in 
a  complete  and  sanitary  way.   And  this  is  not  the 
whole  story. 

The  refuse  collector  never  visits  these  homes.  He 
was  discharged  with  the  advent  of  the  incinerator. 
Formerly  he  made  32  unsanitary  calls  each  day,  192 
each  wfc  k,  not  counting  Sundays,  or  a  total  of  nine 
thousand,  nine  hundred  and  eighty-four  calls  yearly. 
Now  he  does  not  call  at  all. 

In  these  thirty-two  homes  the  incinerator  has  in  a 
single  year  saved  —  made  unnecessary  —  not  less 
than  9,984  visitations  of  the  unsanitary  garbage 
collectors. 

The  incinerator  is  doing  this  for  homes,  hospitals 
and  institutions  everywhere.   Are  you  not  personally 
interested? 

If  there  is  anything  further  you  wish  to  know,  write 
us,  or  send  for  our  representative. 

Yours  truly, 

Incinerators,  Inc. 


50 


HAYMAN  MOTOR  CO. 

HAYMAN,  ILL. 


Mr.  J.  V.  Beaty 
Barrington,  111. 

Dear  Sir: 

As  a  boy  on  the  farm,  down  in  Ohio,  whenever  we  got  a 
piece  of  farm  machinery,  I  remember  that  my  father 
used  to  run  to  the  tool  box,  open  it  and  inspect  the 
tools  immediately.   If  he  found  a  high-class  monkey 
wrench  in  that  box  he  was  happy  and  his  impression 
of  the  quality  of  the  piece  of  machinery  and  the  good 
judgment  of  its  manufacturer  went  up  immediately. 

I  was  reminded  of  this  the  other  day  when  a  woman 
stepped  into  the  tonneau  of  a  Hayman,  sat  down,  smiled 
pleasantly  and  said,  "I  like  this  car  because  they 
don't  skimp  on  the  cushions." 

I  would  like  very  much  to  be  present  when  you  expe- 
rience your  first  ride  in  the  Hayman.   Of  course, 
comfort  is  not  everything,  but  owners  who  have  driven 
cars  for  years  will  confess  to  you  that,  after  all, 
it  is  the  last  word  to  the  owner.   Nothing  is  more 
important  to  women  and  children. 

There  is  a  certain  ease  of  movement,  a  pleasing 
elasticity  of  spring  action,  a  pitch  to  the  cushions, 
a  shape  to  the  arm  rests  —  a  certain  something  about 
Hayman  comfort  which  we  cannot  describe,  but  we 
know  that  you  will  feel. 

I  want  very  much  for  you  to  ride  in  the  Hayman. 
Please  write,  telling  me  when  you  will  be  ready  to 
have  our  representative  call. 

There  will  be  no  objection  and  he  will  give  you  any 
information  that  you  want. 

Yours  very  truly, 

A.  W,  Dean 


51 


DEFENDER  INSURANCE  COMPANY 

BOSTON,  MASSACHUSETTS 


Mr.  T.  D.  Odell, 
28  Concord  St. • 
Roxbury,  Mass. 

Dear  Sir: 

We  are  neither  necromancers  nor  soothsayers,  but 
at  the  same  time  we  can  tell  you  that  November  22 
should  be  marked  on  your  calendar  with  a  red  flag  as 
a  warning  to  you  to  stop  and  think  before  passing 
that  date. 

Why?  Because  midway  between  your  birthdays  it  marks 
your  change  of  age,  the  date  when  you  grow  a  year 
older  in  a  night.  Prior  to  that  day,  from  an  insur- 
ance standpoint,  you  are  thirty  years  old;  on  and 
after  it  you  will  be  thirty-one,  and  your  rate  will 
increase. 

What  of  it?  Well  —  if  you  expect  to  increase  your 
insurance  this  reminder  should  cause  you  to  get  busy 
and  secure  the  additional  amount  while  you  can  take 
advantage  of  the  lower  rate. 

If  you  have  not  given  the  matter  the  necessary  atten- 
tion it  should  cause  you  to  stop,  face  the  situation 
and  ask  yourself,  "Would  my  death  cause  a  material 
loss  of  income  to  my  family?"  If  an  analysis  of 
your  affairs  compels  an  affirmative  answer,  your 
family  needs  additional  protection,  which  you  can 
best  secure  through  a  life  income  contract  under  the 
policy  ten  sound  business  men  picked  from  two  hundred. 

If  this  is  a  new  one  on  you  just  check  the  enclosed 
card  and  the  information  we  can  give  you  will  amply 
repay  you  for  the  time  you  give  us. 

Yours  very  truly, 

Defender  Insurance  Company 


BROOKVALE  CREAMERY 

BROOKVALE,  IOWA 


Mr.  M.  F.  Beard 
32  Sumner  Street 
River    City,    Iowa 

Dear  Sir: 

What  makes  for  good  butter? 

The  breed  of  cattle,  the  proportion  of  fatty  matter, 
climate,  the  animal's  health,  and  the  nature  of  the 
cow's  food  —  these  are  the  influences  which  deter- 
mine whether  butter  is  good  or  bad. 

With  us,  all  of  these  influences  work  for  pure  butter 

Brookvale  Brand.   Our  mountain  meadows  above  the 

city  give  us  the  right  food,  healthy  animals  and  a 
favorable  climate.   The  breed  of  our  cattle  is  a 
butter  breed.  We  get,  as  a  result,  milk  heavy  with 
fat  globules  —  milk  which  makes  for  good  butter. 

We  have  even  enlisted  water  in  our  service.   The 
pure  mountain  water  which  our  cows  drink  in  our 
meadow  pastures  contributes  to  the  rich,  distinctive 
flavor  of  our  milk  —  the  raw  material  from  which 
Brookvale  is  made. 

Every  morning  this  fresh,  fatty  milk  comes  down  to 
us  from  the  meadows.   Come  into  our  new  retail  store 
at  26  Greenfield  St.,  and  see  some  of  it  churned. 
Sample  it.  The  new  store  is  also  selling  eggs,  cheese 
and  buttermilk,  all  of  a  standard  as  high  as  that  of 
Brookvale  Butter.   Drop  in  today. 

Yours  very  truly, 

Brookvale  Creamery 


53 


CARBIDE  DISTRIBUTORS  CORPORATION 

NEW  YORK  CITY 


E.  L.  Newman 

53  Center  Street 

Bridgeport,  Connecticut 

Dear  Sir: 

In  answering  your  inquiry  regarding  acetylene  light- 
ing, we  wish  first  of  all  to  state  our  position  in 
the  matter. 

We  are  distributors  of  the  Homeway  Carbide  from  which 
acetylene  gaslight  is  made.   We  do  not  make  gen- 
erators or  apparatus  for  using  this  carbide. 

In  the  manufacture  of  carbide  the  Homeway  Carbide 
Company  has  several  million  dollars  invested  in  two 
large  plants  and  over  a  hundred  warehouses  for  the 
distribution  of  this  product  throughout  this  country. 

There  are  41  different  manufacturers  of  acetylene 
apparatus  in  the  United  States  whose  generators  are 
acceptable  to  the  Board  of  Insurance  Underwriters, 
but  we  do  not  ourselves  make  a  single  generator. 

Under  separate  cover  we  are  mailing  you  descriptive 
booklets  in  which  you  will  find  interesting  data  and 
facts  bearing  on  some  of  the  questions  that  have 
arisen  in  your  mind. 

We  request  that  you  fill  out  carefully  and  return 
to  us  the  enclosed  form  so  that  our  engineers  may 
furnish  you  further  information  and  decide  which  type 
of  generator  you  could  use  with  best  results. 

We  will  be  glad  to  give  this  information  and  advice 
free  of  cost. 

Yours  truly, 

Carbide  Distributors  Corporation 


54 


GILMORE  &  COLE 
BURLINGTON,  VERMONT 


V.  C.  Holbrook 
20  Everett  Avenue 
Burlington,  Vermont 

Dear  Sir: 

As  a  lawyer  you  make  a  business  of  knowing  the  evi- 
dence in  the  case,  and  understanding  its  weight  and 
importance. 

We'd  like  to  have  you  take  a  case  for  us  and  go  into 
it  in  the  thorough  way  in  which  a  good  lawyer  always 
goes  into  things. 

We  have  evidence  to  prove  that  we've  got  the  best 
clothes  and  other  things  to  wear  that  are  to  be  found 
in  this  city.   Hart,  Schaffner  &  Marx  clothes  are 
the  principal  fact;  but  Whitman  hats  and  Hattenfall 
shirts  are  corroborative. 

Will  you  look  into  it  for  us?  Any  day  you  can  step 
in  here  we'll  lay  the  facts  before  you,  and  ask  for 
your  candid  opinion. 

You  probably  don't  care  to  take  a  case  on  a  contingent 
fee;  but  we  can  assure  you  that  if  you  decide  that 
the  evidence  really  does  support  our  contention,  and 
decide  to  act  on  it  for  yourself,  you'll  make  a  good 
profit. 

Yours  very  truly, 

Gilmore  8e  Cole 


55 


F.  H.  LESLIE  COMPANY 

DALTON,  MASS. 


Mr.  K.  C.  Harvis 
Lancaster,  Utah 

Dear  Sir: 

The  sheet  of  paper  you  now  hold  in  your  hands  is  of 
the  quality  used  by  those  who  sometimes  have  to  "dic- 
tate direct  to  the  machine." 

Those  who  are  compelled  to  put  business  stationery 
to  such  a  severe  test  use  LESLIE'S  BOND,  because  they 
know  that  if  any  mistakes  should  occur,  they  can  be 
quickly  erased  without  spoiling  the  finish  of  the 
paper. 

If  LESLIE'S  BOND  has  made  an  impression  on  you  it 
will  also  make  an  impression  for  you  on  your  cus- 
tomers. 

May  I  ask  you  to  do  us  a  great  favor  by  filling  out 
the  enclosed  card?  It  will  greatly  assist  us  in  de- 
termining the  quality  of  stationery  in  which  you 
may  be  interested. 

Very  truly  yours, 

F.  H.  Leslie  Company 


56 


KELLOGG  TOASTED  CORN  FLAKE  COMPANY 

BATTLE  CREEK,  MICHIGAN 


Hunter's  Grocery 
Westover,  Delaware 

Gentlemen: 

We  want  you  to  open  the  next  lot  of  Kellogg's  Toasted 
Corn  Flakes  in  the  WAXTITE  package  that  you  receive, 
take  two  packages  home  and  give  two  packages  to  each 
of  your  salesmen  with  our  compliments.   Send  the 
bill  to  the  Kellogg  Toasted  Corn  Flake  Co.,  Battle 
Creek. 

Our  reason  for  making  this  request  is  that  we  want 
you  and  your  salesmen  to  get  acquainted  right  at  the 
outset  with  this  new  package. 

Our  sample  crew  will  reach  Westover  within  the  next 
few  days.  Every  sample  we  put  out  in  your  town  will 
be  a  generous  package  —  a  good  serving  for  a  whole 
family.  And  each  package  will  also  contain  a  fresh 
sample  of  Kellogg's  Toasted  Wheat  Biscuit,  sepa- 
rately wrapped. 

The  BIG  thing  about  Kellogg's  WAXTITE  seal  is  that 
it  brings  the  flakes  to  you  and  your  customer  just 
as  fresh,  crisp  and  tender  as  when  they  leave  our 
ovens.   This  is  going  to  mean  a  LOT  of  new  business 
and  we  want  you  to  get  YOUR  SHARE  of  it. 

Food  inspectors  everywhere  will  indorse  WAXTITE  and 
the  grocer  who  pushes  it  will  gain  a  reputation  for 
quality  goods. 

You  will  want  a  good  stock  of  Corn  Flakes  and  Toasted 
Wheat  Biscuit  on  hand  to  cash  in  on  the  demand  which 
is  sure  to  follow  the  sampling.  If  you  will  fill  in 
and  mail  the  enclosed  card,  we  will  see  that  you  are 
supplied  through  your  jobber  with  a  fresh  lot  of 
WAXTITE  goods. 

Yours  truly, 

Kellogg  Toasted  Corn  Flake  Company 


67 


BURTON'S  STORE 


Mr.    Ralph  Steele 
Midway,  Penna. 

Dear  Sir; 

Beginning  the  12th  day  of  July,  Burton's  Longwear 
Shoes  will  drop  to  the  very  bottom.  There  is  no  need 
of  giving  a  long  list  of  prices,  for  I  would  still 
have  to  show  you  the  facts. 

At  this  season  of  the  year  there  are  many  people  that 
want  to  buy  shoes  either  for  the  summer  or  the  winter. 
Being  mid-season,  I  realize  that  some  real  induce- 
ment must  be  made  to  move  the  goods.  I  am  not  going 
to  hold  back  anything  in  the  line  of  footwear; 
women's,  misses',  child's,  men's  and  boys'  high  and 
low  cut,  good  and  bad,  all  go  this  time. 

Now,  even  if  you  don't  live  in  town,  it  will  pay 
you  to  make  a  special  trip  direct  to  Burton's  Store, 
29  High  Street,  Midway,  the  best  store  in  the  state 
for  good  people  and  durable,  stylish  footwear. 

This  is  when  the  fellow  with  the  cash  has  the  ad- 
vantage.  The  best  sizes  and  styles  will  go  first. 
All  goods  will  be  sold  for  a  small  amount  of  hard 
cash. 

Remember  the  date  the  sale  begins.  You  know  the 
great  reduction  at  our  last  sale  and  the  way  the 
shoes  sold. 

A  square  deal  for  a  round  dollar. 

Yours  truly. 

Burton's  Store 


58 


CHAPTER  IV 


EASIER  WAYS  OF  ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 

When  the  use  of  form  paragraphs  was  first  suggested  Just  what  does 
to  the  order  correspondent  of  one  nationally  known  personal  atten- 
wholesale  house,  he  spoke  decidedly:  tion  mean, 

''Most  of  our  sales  are  for  large  amounts,  and  our  anyway? 
men  in  the  field  are  competing  keenly  over  every  order 
with  salesmen  from  other  concerns.  Often  for  some 
personal  reason  the  prospect  gives  us  the  order.  The 
buyer  does  not  want  his  order  acknowledged  with  a 
stereotyped  letter  of  thanks,  which  is  cold  and  imper- 
sonal. There  has  been  real  competition,  and  a  big  order 
has  been  the  stake.  The  prize  has  come  to  us.  To 
recognize  the  favor  and  maintain  our  standing,  I  have 
to  give  the  customer  personal  attention,  thank  him  in  a 
way  that  shows  I  really  mean  what  I  say,  and  tell  him 
how  we  handle  his  order." 

In  spite  of  this  objection,  however,  form  paragraphs 
were  given  a  trial  in  this  concern;  today,  perhaps,  90% 
of  the  order  correspondence  is  handled  by  the  use  of 
these  forms,  together  with  a  few  complete  form  letters. 
The  order  mail  has  been  thoroughly  analyzed  and  sys- 
tematized.    Letters  quite  personal  in  tone  are  still  sent, 
but  the  only  portions  that  are  actually  dictated  are  the 
first  and  last  paragraphs.    To  add  a  touch  of  local     How  this  con- 
color,  the  correspondent  personally  dictates  the  opening     cern  gets  per- 
and  close,  mentioning  in  a  casual  way  the  particular     sonal  attention 
circumstances  that  surrounded  the  giving  of  the  order. 
Thus  the  customer  sees  that  he  has  had  personal  atten- 
tion;  but  the  body  of  the  letter,  the  part  dealing  with 
purely  routine  matters,   is  composed   of  tested  forms 
whose  use  has  been  standardized. 

In  concerns  where  only  one  article  is  sold,  the  post- 
card or  complete  letter  is  valuable  for  an  acknowledg- 
ment. This  is  the  simplest  kind  of  correspondence,  and 
the  order  department  is  usually  the  best  place,  therefore. 


59 


PARA- 
GRAPHS 

^ 

Waterman  Catering  Company 

1694  Kennedy  Street, 
Columbus,  Ohio. 

Columbus 
February  25,  1914 

Co.. 

1 

1 

AS^ 

2 

/33 

3 

lA'o 

^I.S-o 

4 

no 

5 

3-Q. 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

FORM  LETTER 

ENCLOSURES  ^^7^*/ 7  ^^.^V 

SP.  DELV 

REGULAR 

ORDINARY 

superior  at., 
Buffalo »  N.  Y. 

Gentlemen: 

Increasing  business  makes  it  necessary  for  ua 
to  purchase  additional  cooking  equipment.     As  soon  as  pos- 
eitle  will  you  ship  to  us  two  No.   26  Gas  Rangesi    as  listed 
in  your  catalogue  No  16?     Enclosed  herewith  is  our  check 

^                   ..            for    ^94. "Jn^    mhlRh,    nnnnrdlnfr    tt)    t.hn    f^ntnT  npiig.    wqi     nnirar       ,      „               ,,„, 

FIGURE  9:  "Dictating,"  in  the  company 
referred  to  on  the  opposite  page,  comprises 
marking  paragraph  numbers  on  the  small  slip 
of  paper  fastened  to  each  letter.     Then  the 


typist,  not  a  high-priced  stenographer,  copies 
the  standard  paragraphs  in  the  order  noted, 
and  a  well-balanced  letter  is  the  result.  This 
slip  has  proved  both  a  time  and  money  saver 


NAME                                                                         NUMBER 

ADDRESS 

SAMPLES 
SENT 

INQUIRY 
RECEIVED 

INQUIRY 
ANSWERED 

ORDER 
RECEIVED 

AMOUNT 
OF  ORDER 

REMARKS 

FIGURE  10:  A  fairly  complete  history  of 
correspondence  can  be  recorded  on  cards  like 
the  one  shown  above.  There  are  spaces  for 
the  name  and  address  of  the  prospect,  the  date 


his  inquiry  was  received,  the  date  answered, 
and  the  resulting  orders  received  with  the  dates 
on  which  they  were  received  and  the  amounts. 
It's  extremely  simple  but  really  very  useful. 


60 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


to  begin  in  establishing  forms.  But  where  several  ar- 
ticles are  carried,  and  a  large  number  of  customers 
order  more  than  one  of  these  at  a  time,  the  combina- 
tions that  may  arise  are  numberless,  especially  if  all  the 
items  are  not  constantly  kept  in  full  stock.  The  com- 
plete form  letter  will  serve,  of  course,  only  in  the  un- 
usual circumstances. 

Picking  one  letter  from  the  pile  on  his  desk,  a  corre- 
spondent in  a  wholesale  house  illustrated  this  difficulty. 
The  customer,  in  this  case,  had  ordered  three  dozen  dish 
pans,  but  only  two  dozen  of  the  style  wanted  were  in 
stock;  a  dozen  and  half  glass  jars,  all  of  which  were 
sent;  and  a  gross  of  boxes  of  toothpicks,  which  were 
not  and  never  had  been  carried. 

"Scarcely  more  than  once  in  a  year,"  said  the  corre- 
spondent, ^'does  such  a  combination  as  this  occur.  But 
when  it  does,  your  letter  has  to  cover  all  the  points,  or 
the  customer  may  think  that  his  order  has  been  poorly 
handled.  We  use  a  complete  form  letter  with  blanks 
to  be  filled  in  with  the  specific  articles  mentioned  in  a 
compHcated  case  hke  this. " 

This  house,  like  the  other  concern,  uses  form  para- 
graphs for  most  of  the  order  correspondence.  For  mis- 
cellaneous orders,  it  finds  that  only  the  paragraph  plan 
gives  the  required  flexibility. ,  Each  paragraph  covers 
just  one  point  and  is  so  designed  that  it  fits  naturally 
into  the  letter  before  or  after  almost  any  of  the  other 
paragraphs  in  the  series.  Consequently,  a  correspondent 
who  has  grown  familiar  with  his  book  can  make  the  cor- 
rect combination  of  paragraphs  to  fit  any  occasion  that 
naight  happen  to  arise. 

A  small  slip  of  paper  is  fastened  to  every  letter  (Fig- 
ure 9).  When  the  correspondent  ''dictates,"  he  simply 
marks  on  this  slip  the  numbers  of  the  paragraphs,  in  the 
order  he  wants  them  to  be  copied,  noting  also  any  ''fill-in" 
to  be  made.  A  typist  does  the  transcribing,  replacing  a 
highly  paid  stenographer.  This  effects,  it  is  evident, 
an  important  economy. 

Even  more  important  is  the  fact  that  all  letters 
leaving  the  house  are  of  a  high  quality.  Each  paragraph 
has  been  carefully  worked  out,  and  in  its  final  shape 
bears  the  stamp  of  approval  of  the  management.  Nat- 
urally, such  a  paragraph  is  more  effective  than  one  which 
the  ordinary  correspondent  would  dictate  offhand. 


A  good  place  to 
begin  with 
standard  para- 
graphs 


This    combina- 
tion occurred 
only  once  a 
year 


The  dictation 
slip 


61 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


The  four  divi- 
sions of  order 
correspondence 


Getting  a  line 
on  your 
requirements 


This  makes 
reference  quick 
and  sure 


Analysis  of  the  order  correspondence  of  the  jobber, 
who  uses  form  paragraphs  for  90%  of  his  letters,  re- 
vealed the  fact  that,  apart  from  the  paragraphs  required 
for  the  opening  and  close,  it  contained  four  general 
divisions  (Figure  11).  In  the  first  division  were  listed 
instances  where  the  order  was  filled  complete.  This 
required  simply  an  acknowledgment  in  answer.  In  the 
second  division  were  orders  on  which  none  of  the  goods 
were  sent  and  the  only  answer  possible  was  an  explana- 
tion of  the  reason  why.  In  the  third  main  division  were 
orders  shipped  not  exactly  as  the  customer  directed — 
either  different  goods  were  sent,  or  they  were  sent  in  a 
different  way.  It  was  necessary  to  explain  here  exactly 
what  changes  were  made  and  why.  Sometimes  ques- 
tions arose  about  the  amount  of  money  remitted.  This 
part  of  the  correspondence  is  especially  likely  to  bulk 
large  in  a  concern  w^here  the  terms  of  sale  are  cash  or 
part  cash  with  the  order. 

With  this  fourfold  analysis  as  a  beginning  it  is  a  simple 
matter  to  use  the  following  paragraph  series.  Run 
through  the  carbon  copies  of  your  order  letters  for  two 
or  three  weeks,  and  carefully  compare  them  at  every 
point  with  this  analysis  and  see  for  yourself  how  easily 
the  same  basic  divisions  may  be  applied  to  your  business. 
A  few  of  the  matters  covered  in  the  present  series  may 
not  occur  in  your  letters;  and  you  may  find  you  need 
paragraphs  not  included  here.  But  the  outlines  will  be 
the  same,  so  that  will  be  simple  for  you  to  adjust.  Many 
phrases  will  require  only  that  you  change  a  single  word 
with  your  pen  in  the  wide  margin  left  for  that  purpose, 
and  m  many  cases  you  will  be  able  to  use  these 
paragraphs  as  they  stand. 

In  the  completed  series  each  paragraph  has  a  dis- 
tinguishing number.  Correspondents  soon  learn  the 
paragraphs  by  number,  and  will  then  make  up  their 
letters  very  quickly  after  the  manner  shown  in  Figure  9. 

Sometimes,  if  regular  sales  paragraphs  do  not  exist, 
good  results  are  secured  by  putting  a  few  words  of  care- 
fully prepared  sales  talk  into  the  order  letter,  though 
some  concerns  consider  it  unwise  to  combine  order  and 
Belling  correspondence.  One  jobber  uses  what  he  calls 
"seasonal"  paragraphs,  which  fit  natm-ally  into  the  rest 
of  his  paragraph  system.  Thus,  in  the  early  spring,  the 
following  paragraph,  which  pulled  sales  in  30%  of  the 


62 


1 

Index  to  Paragraphs 

■  1 

r-                       Orders  1-9 

/ 

Openers 
1-49 

-|                  Complaints  10-19 

Collections  20-29                  [ 

I-                       Sales  30-49                      | 

r-                     Orders  50-59                    | 

Closers 
50-99 

Complaints  60-69 

Collections  70-79 

*-                      Sales  80-99 

Sending  complete    100-109 

Not  sending  110-119 

p           In  the  goods  120-129 

Orders 
100-199 

Sending  with  changes  120-139 

L-   In  method  of  shipment  130-139 

Amount  of  money  140-159           j-. 

Bill  160-169 

Not  enough  140-149 

1-             Too  much  150-159 

L                 Guarantee   170-199 

-  Not  what  was  ordered   200-209 

r-l       Quality  goods  received  200-229 

Damaged  210-219 

Complaints 
200-299 

-|      Quantity  goods  received  230-249 

— 

-         Unsatisfactory  220-229 

Mistake  in  bill   250-259 

•-               MiscellaneoDs  260-299 

Only  part   230-239 

L                None    240-249 

Debtor  gives  no  reason  300-309 

Collections 
300-399 

Debtor  gives  reason   310-319 

-    Arguments  for  payment  now  320-329 

1-       In  case  of  non-payment   330-399 

Effect  400-409 

Sales 
400-499 

p                 The  article  400-429 

-            Description  410-419 

L             The  proposition    430-499 

—          Testimonials  420-429 

Price    430-439 

-     Method  of  ordering  440-449 

-               Service  450-459 

-            Guarantee  460-499 

__ 

FIGURE  11:     It  is  an  index  similar  to  the  given  over  to  openers  and  closers,  all  corre- 

one  shown  here  that  simplifies  considerably  spondence  is  divided  into  four  classes,  orders, 

the  handling  of  correspondence  as  described  complaints,  collections,  and  sales.      The  num- 

on   page   62.     Outside  of  the   two   divisions  bers  refer,  of  course,  to  standard  paragraphs. 

63 


FORM  LEHER 
ANSWERING 
INQUIRY  ON 


Player  Piano 
100 


Baby  Grand 
200 


General 

Information 

100 

Price 
110 

Wants  to 

Examine 

120 

Wants  More 

Information 

130 

Decline  Order 
140 

Objections 
150 

Buy  Later 
160 

Terms 
170 


Description 
201 


Church  Organ 
300 


Price 
210 


Terms 
220 

Combination 
230 

Asks 

Information 

301 

Price 
310 

Terms 
320 

Objections 
330 


[101.  Asks  for  Booklet 

102.  Wants  Description 

103.  Sends  Prospect's  Name 

104.  Letter  to  Prospect 

110.  Asks  Price 

112.  Dealer  Asks  Price 

116.  Offers  Lower  Price 


120. 
121. 


Wants  Name  of  Local  Dealer 
Wants  Piano  on  Approval 


124.    Have  We  Branch  Office  in- 


130. 
1 131. 


Asks  Size  of  Piano 

Can  We  Supply  Model  A? 


[135.  Does  Player  Detach  from  Piano? 

[l40.  Orders  for  Different  Parts 

[141.  Foreign  Order  Wants  Credit 

(150.  Not  Suited  Small  Flat 

1 51 .  Price  Too  High,  Wants  Second-hand 

f55.  Can't  Afford 

fl60.  Will  Buy  Later 

[161.  Been  Sick.    Had  Hard  Luck 

1170.  Change  Terms  of  Payment 

1~75.  Offers  Order  on  Different  Terms 


1201.  Full  particulars 

202.  Wants  to  Test 

205.  Size  of  Piano 

1210.  Cash  Price 

211.  Cash  to  Dealers 

212.  Price  to  Music  College 

213.  Wants  Special  Price  Number 

[220.  Customer  Asks  Terms 

1 221.  Wants  Special  Terms 

[224.  Will  Buy  Later 

[230.  Wants  With  Player 

1233.  Wants  Bench 

1301.  Full  Information 

305.  Size  of  Organ 

1310.  Cash  Price 

315.  Wants  Special  Price.    Number 

1320.  Customer  Asks  Terms 

324.  Will  Buy  Later 

1330.  Not  Suited  to  Large  Church 

331.  Can't  Afford 

332.  Price  Too  High 


FIGURE  1 2 :  Here's  another  numerical  index 
of  form  letters,  helpful  in  answering  inquiries. 
Although  this  particular  index  is  used  by  a 
piano  company,  the  idea  is  easily  applicable 


to  any  business.  A  thoughtful  analysis  of 
your  correspondence  should  enable  you  to  draw 
up  a  somewhat  similar  index  which  will  be  ex- 
actly suited  to  your  particular  requirements. 


U 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


instances,  was  prepared  and  inserted  in  every  acknowl- 
edgment that  left  the  house: 

Fly  time  will  soon  be  here.      You  had  bet- 
ter take  advantage  of  the  crusade  against 
flies  which  is  popular  at  this  time  and 
put  a  few  dollars  into  your  pocket.      We 
have  the  best  fly  swatter  on  the  market. 
The  handle  is  two  feet   long  and  the  mesh 
is  of  extra  heavy  screening.      These  swat- 
ters are  going  to  be  pushed  in  our  adver- 
tising,  and  there  will  be  a  big  demand  for 
them.      In  your  next  order,   please  tell  us 
how  many  you  want.     We  guarantee  they  will 
sell  well.     Special  price  to  you  is  20 
cents  a  dozen. 

A  large  concern  which  caters  chiefly  to  the  hotel  and 
restaurant  trade  follows  the  same  plan.  It  carries  many 
novelties  that  are  to  be  used  only  on  special  holidays. 
Two  or  three  months  before  St.  Patrick's  Day,  for 
instance,  a  special  sales  paragraph  is  made  up,  dealing 
with  some  novelty  in  green.  New  ideas  that  occur  from 
time  to  time  help  to  keep  the  paragraph  book  up  to  its 
very  best  possibilities. 

Instead  of  copying  each  paragraph  into  a  single  letter, 
one  mail-order  house  economizes  in  an  interesting  way. 
Each  paragraph  is  reproduced  on  a  short  letterhead. 
These  letterheads  are  then  placed  in  convenient  num- 
bered sections  in  a  cabinet.  When  a  reply  is  to  be  sent, 
a  girl  selects  the  proper  sheets  for  each  point  from  this 
cabinet,  fastens  them  together  and  uses  a  rubber  stamp 
to  put  the  company's  name  on  the  last  one. 

Handled  in  this  way,  the  letter  requires  no  typing — 
the  plan  is  quick  and  cheap.  The  girl  who  selects  the 
sheets  from  the  cabinet  need  not  be  so  high-priced  even 
as  a  typist  and  as  a  matter  of  fact  she  performs  the 
work  much  more  quickly. 

For  some  concerns  this  method  would  be  impracticable 
because  their  customers  would  not  like  to  receive  letters 
made  up  in  such  a  way.  But  low  prices  are  the  great 
talking  point  in  this  firm,  and  every  method  that  cuts 
cost  is  referred  to  by  the  management  as  an  evidence 
that  they  save  in  doing  business  rather  than  in  the 
quahty  of  merchandise. 


Taking  full 
advantage  oj 
seasonal 
specialties 


This  is  a  money 
saver  if  you  can 
use  it 


No  typing 
required 


65 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Cut  out  To  standardize  order  letters  is  not  only  easier  than 

the  deadly  ordinary  dictation,  but  more  conducive  to  lively  phrasing. 

monotony  Saying  over  and  over,  day  after  day,  the  same  thing 

in  almost  the  same  way,  the  correspondent  cannot  help 
but  let  this  deadly  monotony  creep  into  his  dictation. 
Life  and  interest,  on  the  other  hand,  can  be  put  into  the 
form  once  for  all.  He  dictates  simply  a  number,  or 
writes  it  on  the  slip  of  paper,  and  his  mind  is  in  this 
way  left  fresh  for  the  special  letters  and  problems  that 
require  real  originality. 


68 


INDEX  TO  ORDER  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 


1  Acknowledgment 

2  We  are  sending  today 

3  Thanks 

4-8      Use  these  numbers  for  special  opening  order 
paragraphs  you  may  add    .... 


PAGE      Constant  use  of  this 


69 
69 
69 

69 


index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


CLOSERS 

50 

Thanks  simply 

61 

Sent  as  soon  as  money  is  received 

52 

Order  sent — hope  will  prove  satisfactory 

53 

Changes  made  in  order — if  not  satisfactory, 

and  so  forth  ...... 

64 

Shipment  delayed 

55 

Unable  to  fill  order 

56 

Holding  order  until  we  hear 

57-59      For  additional  paragraphs 


70 
70 

70 

70 
70 
70 
70 
70 


WE  ARE  SENDING  COMPLETE 

100      Goods  packed  and  sent 
101-109      For  additional  paragraphs 


71 
71 


WE  ARE  NOT  SENDING 

110  Never  had  such  goods         ....  72 

111  Used  to  have,  but  discontinued  ...  72 

112  Ordered  from  old  price  list,  discontinued      .  72 

113  We  want  cash  in  advance  ....  72 

114  Credit  doubtful  .....  73 

115  Out,  temporarily — are  holding  order    .         .  73 

116  Out,  temporarily — please  reorder  if  you  want 

later    .......  73 

117  Want  your  approval  on  changes  before  we 

send    .......  73 


WE  ARE  SENDING  WITH  CHANGES 
In  the  Goods 

120  Part  now 

121  Another  article — same  grade 

122  Another  article — better  grade 


75 
75 

75 


67 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Constant  use  of  this 
index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


In  the  Goods  (continued) 

123  Another  article — ^lower  grade — we  remit 

124  Part  only,  because  not  enough  money 
125-129      For  additional  paragraphs    . 

In  Method  of  Shipment 

130  Too  heavy  to  go  by  express — cheaper  by 

freight          ...... 

131  Cannot  send  by  parcel  post,  because  of 

regulation 

132  Not  enough  money — therefore  sent  collect   . 

133  We  are  ordering  sent  direct  from  the  factory 


PAGE 

75 
76 
76 


77 


134-139      For  additional  paragraphs 


77 

77 
77 
77 


AMOUNT  OF  MONEY  SENT 
Not  Enough 

140  To  prepay  postage     .... 

141  If  you  want  the  more  expensive  article 

142  Because  we  sent  more  expensive  article 

143  On  account  of  changes  in  prices 

144  On  account  of  your  mistake 


145-149 
Too  Much 


For  additional  paragraphs 


150  Mistake  of  calculation  on  your  part     . 

151  Ordered  from  old  price  sheet — price  lowered 

152  Because  we  sent  collect      .         .         .         . 

153  Because  we  sent  cheaper  way 
154-159      For  additional  paragraphs    . 


80 
80 
80 
80 
81 
81 


82 
82 
82 
82 
82 


THE  BILL 


160  Sending  the  bill 

161  Bill  differs  from  prices  on  your  order 
162-169      For  additional  paragraphs   . 


84 
84 
84 


GUARANTEE 


170  General 

171  Absolute 

172-199      For  additional  order  paragraphs 


85 
85 
85 


68 


ORDER  PARAGRAPHS 

OPENERS 

1  Acknowledgment 

We  acknowledge  herewith  the  receipt  of  your 
order  of  the  (date) . 

2  We  Are  Sending  Today 

We  are  sending  today  the  goods  on  your  order  of 
the  (date). 

3  Thanks 

Thanks  for  your  order  of  the  (date) . 

4-8    Use  these  numbers  for  special  opening  order  paragraphs  you  may  add 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  malce 


t)9 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  P.I  O^PRQ 

Phrasing  Here  UI.U0C.I10 

50  Thanks  Simply 

We  thank  ycu  for  this  order,  and  ask  that  we 
may  be  allowed  to  serve  you  again  in  the  near 
future . 

51  Sent  as  Soon  as  Money  Is  Received 

The  goods  will  be  packed  and  sent  forward  at 
once  upon  receipt  of  the  above  remittance. 

52  Order  Sent— Hope  Will  Prove  Satisfactory 

We  believe  this  treatment  of  your  order  will  be 
entirely  satisfactory,  and  ask  that  we  be 
allowed  to  serve  you  again  in  the  near  future. 

53  Changes  Made  in  Order— If  Not  Satisfactory,  and  so  forth 

If  this  treatment  of  ycur  order  is  not  entirely 
satisfactory,  let  us  know  and  we  will  make  good 
at  our  own  expense. 

54  Shipment  Delayed 

We  regret  this  slight  delay,  and  sincerely  hope 
it  will  not  put  you  to  any  inconvenience. 

55  Unable  to  Fill  Order 

We  sincerely  regret  that  we  are  unable  to  serve 
you  at  this  time. 

56  Holding  Order  Until  We  Hear 

We  are  holding  your  order  until  we  hear  from 
you. 

57-59    For  additional  paragraphs 


70 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


WE  ARE  SENDING  COMPLETE  Note  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 

100  Goods  Packed  and  Sent 

Careful  attention  has  been  given  to  the  se- 
lection and  packing  of  the  goods,  and  we  be- 
lieve you  will  find  them  correct  in  every 
detail.  If  they  are  not  entirely  as  you 
desire,  kindly  let  us  know  at  once. 

1 01  -1 09    For  additional  paragraphs 


71 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In  WE   ARE    NOT    SENDING 

Phrasing  Here 

110  Never  Had  Such  Goods 

Perhaps  there  has  been  some  misunderstanding 
on  your  part,  as  we  have  never  carried  (name 
of  article) .   We  are,  therefore,  returning 
your  order  to  you  unfilled.  If  we  could,  we 
should  gladly  refer  you  to  houses  that  do 
carry  these  goods,  but  we  are  sorry  that  we 
find  it  impossible  to  do  this  in  the  present 
instance. 

111  Used  to  Have,  but  Discontinued 

Since  distributing  the  last  edition  of  our 
price  list,  we  have  stopped  handling  (name  of 
article).  We  notified  our  customers  of  this 
fact  a  short  time  ago,  but  probably  our  letter 
failed  to  reach  you.  Is  there  not  some  other 
article  we  can  supply  to  you  that  will  take 
the  place  of  this? 

112  Ordered  from  Old  Price  List,  Discontinued 

You  have  evidently  made  up  your  order  from  an 
old  edition  of  our  price  list,  for  (name  of 
article)  has  not  been  listed  in  the  revised 
edition.  We  are  ordering  a  copy  of  the  latest 
edition  of  the  price  list  sent  you,  so  that 
your  files  may  be  up  to  date.  If  this  copy 
does  not  reach  you  in  a  day  or  so,  please 
notify  us  and  we  will  mail  you  another  as  soon 
as  we  hear  from  you. 

113  We  Want  Cash  in  Advance 

Whenever  customers  are  unknown  to  us,  and  they 
have  no  credit  rating  with  either  Dun  or  Brad- 
street,  we  make  it  a  rule  always  to  require 
cash  with  the  order.  This  is  done  simply 
because  we  conduct  our  business  on  so  narrow  a 
margin  of  profit  that  we  cannot  afford  the 
loss  of  a  single  dollar.  Since  we  must  adhere 
to  the  firm's  rule,  we  ask  you  to  send  the 
catalog  price  for  the  full  amount  of  your 
order,  which  is  (amount). 


72 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


114  Credit  Doubtful 

Because  the  reports  in  our  files  fail  to  cover 
your  case  completely,  the  credit  department 
has  asked  us  to  wait  until  it  gets  more 
definite  information.  If  you  will  send  the 
names  of  three  or  four  responsible  men  in  your 
city — bankers  or  business  men — to  whom  our 
credit  man  can  refer,  he  will  then  be  able  to 
0.  K.  your  order  and  put  it  through  for 
prompt  shipment. 

115  Out,  Temporarily— Are  Holding  Order 

Our  stock  of  (name  of  article)  has  been 
temporarily  exhausted,  owing  to  the  heavy 
demand.  However,  we  have  placed  a  rush  order 
with  the  factory,  and  the  new  supply  will 
reach  us  in  a  very  few  days.  We  are,  there- 
fore, filing  your  order,  and  shall  see  that 
the  goods  are  forwarded  to  you  from  the  fresh 
stock  just  as  soon  as  it  is  unloaded  at  our 
warehouse. 

116  Out,  Temporarily— Please  Reorder  if  You  Want  Later 

Our  stock  of  (name  of  article)  has  been 
temporarily  exhausted,  owing  to  the  heavy  de- 
mand. An  order  for  a  new  supply  has  been 
placed  with  the  factory,  but  we  find  it  will 
be  several  weeks  before  this  can  reach  us. 
Under  these  circumstances  we  think  you  will 
not  want  us  to  hold  your  order  on  file.  If, 
however,  you  wish  to  have  the  goods  forwarded 
to  you  as  soon  as  they  arrive  at  our  ware- 
house, will  you  please  notify  us  at  once? 

117  Want  Your  Approval  on  Changes  before  We  Send 

It  will  be  impossible  for  us  to  fill  your 
order  exactly  as  you  desired.  However,  we  can 
substitute  (name  of  article)  for  (name  of 
article).  As  this  is  slightly  more  expensive 
than  the  article  you  ordered,  we  want  your 
approval  before  we  send  it.  We  are  witholding 
shipment  until  we  hear  from  you.  So  kindly 
let  us  know  your  wishes  at  once. 


Note  Changes  In 
Phrasing  Here 


73 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


74 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


SENDING  WITH  CHANGES  IN  THE  GOODS  Note  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 

120  Part  Now 

In  accordance  with  your  instructions,  we  are 
sending  the  (name  of  article)  today.   Great 
care  has  been  given  to  the  packing  and  ship- 
ping of  this  consignment;  we  feel  sure  it  will 
reach  you  in  first-class  shape  and  prove 
satisfactory  in  every  way. 

121  Another  Article— Same  Grade 

In  making  up  your  order  we  have  found  it  im- 
possible to  supply  you  with  the  exact  grade 
of  (name  of  article)  that  you  desired.  Rather 
than  delay  your  shipment,  however,  we  have 
substituted  an  article  that  is  exactly  the 
equal  in  every  respect  of  the  one  you  ordered. 
It  costs  us  exactly  the  same  and  sells  for  the 
same,  as  you  will  see  by  referring  to  our 
price  sheet.  But  if  you  find  when  you  examine 
it  that  this  doesn't  entirely  suit  you,  we 
shall  be  glad  to  have  you  return  it  to  us  at 
our  expense. 

122  Another  Article— Better  Grade 

It  has  been  impossible  for  us  to  supply  you 
with  the  exact  grade  of  (name  of  article) 
which  you  desired.  Rather  than  delay  your 
shipment,  however,  until  we  received  a  fresh 
supply,  we  have  selected  from  our  stock  an- 
other article  of  a  little  better  quality 
than  the  one  you  ordered.  This  article  costs 
us  more,  and  regularly  sells  for  more,  but 
since  the  fault  in  this  instance  is  ours,  we 
are  not  going  to  charge  you  anything  extra. 
If  you  find  on  examination  that  for  any  rea- 
son you  can't  use  this  article,  we  shall  be 
glad  to  have  you  return  it  to  us  at  our 
expense . 

1 23  Another  Article— Lower  Grade— We  Remit 

For  the  time  being  we  are  out  of  (name  of 
article),  and  we  cannot  tell  exactly  when  our 

75 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Nolo  Changes  in  supplv  Will  be  replenished.     Rather  than  keep 

Pnrasins  Here  ^^    ,/  i 

you  waiting,  we  are  sending  the  nearest  thing 
to  what  you  ordered  that  we  have  in  stock. 
This  is  a  slightly  cheaper  grade,  and  we  are 
therefore  remitting  herewith  the  difference 
in  price.  We  believe  this  is  what  you  would 
want  us  to  do.  But  if,  for  any  reason,  you 
cannot  use  the  article  we  are  sending,  we 
shall  be  glad  to  have  you  return  it  to  us  at 
our  expense. 

124    Part  Only,  because  Not  Enough  Money 

The  amount  which  you  remitted  was  not  quite 
sufficient  to  cover  the  entire  amount  of  the 
bill.  We  have  therefore  left  out  of  this 
shipment  (quantity  and  article  omitted).  We 
felt  that  it  would  be  more  satisfactory  to 
you  if  we  did  this  rather  than  write  for  the 
balance  due  and  thus  keep  the  whole  shipment 
waiting  several  days.  Doubtless  you  will  be 
making  up  another  order  in  the  near  future, 
and  you  can  then  include  the  omitted  item. 

125-1 29    For  additional  paragraphs 


76 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


SENDING  WITH  CHANGE  IN  METHOD  OF  SHIPMENT        Note  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 

130  Too  Heavy  to  Go  By  Express— Cheaper  by  Freight 

When  we  had  completed  packing  your  goods,  we 
found  that  they  were  heavy  enough  to  make 
a  sufficiently  large  freight  shipment.  We 
have,  therefore,  taken  the  liberty  to  send 
them  in  this  way  instead  of  by  express,  as 
you  suggested.   The  charges  will  be  consid- 
erably less,  and  we  feel  sure  you  will  ap- 
prove our  action. 

131  Cannot  Send  by  Parcel  Post,  because  of  Regulation 

Post  office  regulations  make  it  impossible 
for  us  to  send  your  goods  by  parcel  post.  We 
have  therefore  taken  the  liberty  of  forwarding 
them  to  you  by  (express  or  freight).  We  feel 
sure  you  will  approve  of  our  action,  as  it 
would  have  kept  you  waiting  some  time  had  we 
first  asked  you  for  further  shipping 
instructions. 

132  Not  Enough  Money — Therefore  Sent  Collect 

In  checking  over  your  remittance  we  find  that 
you  did  not  make  allowance  for  carriage 
charges.  Rather  than  delay  the  shipment,  we 
have  taken  the  liberty  of  deviating  from  your 
shipping  instructions.  The  goods  are  going 
forward  today  by  (freight  or  express),  charges 
collect. 

133  We  Are  Ordering  Sent  Direct  from  the  Factory 

Our  warehouse  stock  of  (name  of  article)  is 
exhausted  just  at  present.   In  order  not  to 
keep  you  waiting  a  minute  longer  than  neces- 
sary we  have  sent  word  to  the  factory  to  ship 
your  goods  direct.   They  should  reach  you  in 
a  very  few  days,  almost  as  soon  as  if  they 
were  coming  from  our  own  warehouse. 

1 34-1 39    For  additional  paragraphs 


77 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


78 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


79 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  MONEY  SENT— NOT   ENOUGH 

Phrasing  Here 

1 40  To  Prepay  Postage 

The  amount  you  remitted  is  just  sufficient  to 
cover  the  cost  of  the  goods,  without  including 
postage.  Since  it  will  be  a  saving  to  you  to 
have  this  package  sent  by  parcel  post  instead 
of  by  express  collect,  we  are  withholding 
shipment  until  we  receive  the  amount  to  cover 
postage  charges  (insert  amount). 

1 41  If  You  Want  the  More  Expensive  Article 

It  is  impossible  for  us  to  supply  you  with  the 
exact  style  of  (name  of  article)  which  you 
ordered.  However,  we  have  another  article 

(Price  List  No ),  which  is  very  similar  in 

design  but  a  trifle  more  expensive.  We  do  not 
feel  like  taking  the  liberty  of  sending  this 
without  first  securing  your  permission.  How- 
ever, if  you  think  this  article  will  meet  your 
needs,  kindly  forward  the  difference  in  price, 
(insert  amount),  and  we  shall  see  that  ship- 
ment is  made  at  once. 

142  Because  We  Sent  More  Expensive  Article 

In  the  shipment  to  you  which  has  left  our 
house  today  we  included  a  slightly  more  ex- 
pensive type  of  (name  of  article)  than  the 
one  you  ordered,  which  we  could  not  supply. 
We  felt  sure  you  would  rather  have  us  do  this 
than  keep  you  waiting  possibly  several  weeks 
before  our  fresh  supply  comes  in.  If  the 
article  proves  not  to  be  what  you  want,  after 
you  have  examined  it,  you  can  return  it  to  us 
at  our  expense.  If,  however,  you  decide  to 
keep  it,  kindly  remit  the  difference  in  price 
(insert  amount) . 

143  On  Account  of  Changes  in  Prices 

On  some  items  it  is  impossible  to  keep  our 
price  list  completely  up  to  date,  because  of 
the  frequent  changes  in  the  market.  This 
happens  to  be  true  of  the  (name  of  article) 


80 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


included  in  your  present  order.  The  price  has  pJl^,nJ*'He'e '" 
advanced  from  (unit  price  to  unit  price),  and 
we  must  therefore  ask  you  to  send  the  differ- 
ence, or  (total  amount  due),  upon  receipt  of 
which  shipment  will  be  made  at  once. 

144    On  Account  of  Your  Mistake 

In  checking  over  the  amount  you  remitted,  we 
find  you  have  made  a  slight  mistake.  The  full 
remittance  to  cover  the  goods  you  ordered 
should  be  (insert  amount),  whereas  you  have 
sent  only  (insert  amount).  We  realize  that 
this  is  simply  an  oversight  on  your  part,  and 
just  as  soon  as  we  receive  the  difference, 
(insert  amount),  the  goods  will  be  forwarded 
to  you  at  once. 

1 45-1 49    For  additional  paragraphs 


81 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  MONEY    SENT— TOO    MUCH 

Phrasing  Here 

1 50  Mistake  of  Calculation  on  Your  Part 

In  checking  over  the  amount  of  your  remit- 
tance, we  find  you  have  sent  us  more  than 
enough  money  to  cover  the  cost  of  the  goods. 
We  are,  therefore,  returning  the  balance  (in- 
sert amount) . 

1 51  Ordered  from  Old  Price  Sheet— Price  Lowered 

Your  order  was  apparently  made  up  from  an  old 
price  sheet,  as  you  have  remitted  in  accord- 
ance with  prices  which  have  since  been 
lowered.  We  are  sending  you  a  copy  of  our 
latest  price  sheet,  in  order  that  your  files 
may  be  up  to  date,  and  we  are  also  returning 
the  amount  which  this  revision  of  prices 
leaves  due  you  (insert  amount). 

1 52  Because  We  Sent  Collect 

The  amount  you  remitted  for  carriage  charges 
was  not  quite  sufficient  to  cover  these. 
Rather  than  keep  you  waiting  until  you  could 
send  us  the  full  amount,  we  have  forwarded 
the  goods  collect,  and  we  are  returning  here- 
with the  full  amount  you  sent  for  this 
purpose  (insert  amount). 

1 53  Because  We  Sent  Cheaper  Way 

After  we  had  packed  your  goods,  we  found  they 
could  go  just  as  well  by  parcel  post  as  by 
express.  We  took  the  liberty,  therefore,  to 
send  them  in  that  way,  and  we  are  returning 
herewith  the  difference  in  carriage  charges 
(insert  amount)  which  we  have  saved  you. 

1 54-1 59    For  additional  paragraphs 


82 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


83 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In  THE    BILL 

Phrasing  Here 

160  Sending  the  Bill 

The  bill  accompanies  (this  letter,  the  goods) 

1 61  Bill  Differs  from  Prices  on  Your  Order 

You  will  notice  that  the  amount  of  the  bill 
does  not  exactly  correspond  with  the  amount 
which  you  figured  in  your  order.  This  is  due 
to  a  change  in  the  price  (name  of  article) 
which  now  sells  at  (unit  price) . 

162-169    For  additional  paragraphs 


84 


ACKNOWLEDGING  ORDERS 


GUARANTEE  NoU  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 


170  General 


That  you  will  be  well  pleased  with  the  quality 
of  these  goods,  we  are  thoroughly  confident. 
If  there  is  anything  at  all  in  connection  with 
the  shipment  that  puzzles  or  displeases  you, 
let  us  know  at  once  and  we  shall  see  that  the 
matter  is  promptly  straightened  out  to  your 
complete  satisfaction. 

171    Absolute 

If  you  find  on  examination  that  the  goods  we 
are  sending  you  are  not  exactly  as  represent- 
ed, or  if  they  do  not  completely  measure  up  to 
your  expectations  in  every  way,  ship  them  back 
to  us  at  our  expense  and  we  will  refund  every 
cent  of  your  money.   Can  we  do  more? 

1 72-1 99    For  additional  order  paragraphs 


85 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


S6 


CHAPTER  V 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  THAT  CUT  COSTS 


Form  letters  fit  naturally  into  order  correspondence. 
Many  concerns  use  simply  a  postcard  as  a  combined 
acknowledgment  and  notice  of  shipment.  Other  houses 
have  printed  slips  or  duplicated  letters  which  answer  the 
same  purpose.  The  scope  of  the  printed  card  or  slip 
and  the  duphcated  letter,  however,  is  somewhat  narrowed 
by  the  fact  that  these  are  all  less  flexible  than  a  series 
of  form  paragraphs.  Their  use  is  hmited,  it  is  evident, 
to  instances  where  it  is  necessary  to  cover  only  one  point, 
or  perhaps  some  combination  of  points  that  are  con- 
stantly recurring. 

A  self-evident  but  often  disregarded  rule  is,  to  use  a 
form  letter  in  order  correspondence  only  when  it  is 
specifically  applied  to  the  case  in  hand.  A  sentence  or 
paragraph  having  nothing  to  do  with  one  customer's 
individual  problem  will  at  least  confuse  him;  more  than 
that,  it  is  likely  to  give  a  bad  impression  of  your  methods 
of  doing  business.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  send  him 
a  letter  which  fails  to  tell  completely  how  you  have 
gone  about  handhng  the  order,  it  will  cause  irritation  and 
perhaps  the  loss  of  a  customer  for  the  future.  When 
the  form  letter  does  apply,  however,  it  is  by  far  the 
most  economical  method  that  is  available  of  answering 
those  routine  parts  of  your  correspondence  which  bulk 
large  under  a  more  or  less  limited  number  of  common 
headings. 

The  letters  given  with  this  chapter  were  based  on 
the  successful  analysis  prepared  by  the  manager  of  a 
retail-by-mail  business  where  the  paragraph  idea  has 
also  been  adopted  with  satisfactory  results.  Rounded 
out  by  comparison  with  the  favorite  order  letters  which 
are  used  in  half  a  dozen  different  kinds  of  concerns, 
the  series  fairly  covers  the  field  of  order  form  letters 
in  the  average  business. 


Have  you  ever 
thought  of  this? 


Where  the  com- 
plete form 
letter  is  at  a 
disadvantage 


$7 


ORDER  FORM  LETTERS 

1100-1149 

Goods 
being  sent 

1150-1199 
Goods  not 
being  sent 

Used   during 
Week  of 
Month  of 

Total 

1100  Sending,  simply 

1101  Sending  part,  not  enough  money  for  rest 

1102  Ordered  sent  from  factory  direct 

11 03  Too  much  money  sent,  rest  returned 

1150  We  never  carried,  credit  order 

1151  We  never  carried,  cash  order 

1152  We  no  longer  carry,  credit  order 

1153  We  no  longer  carry,  cash  order 

1154  Require  cash  in  advance 

1155  Out  of  stock,  holding  order  on  file 

1156  Out  of  stock,  not  holding  order,  credit  order 

1157  Out  of  stock,  not  holding  order,  cash  order 

1158  Amount  of  money  sent  not  sufficient 

FIGURE  13:     Economy  in  the  use  of  form  a  month  you  will  have  a  basis  for  judging  how 

letters  is  secured  by  the  help  of  this  form.  many  of  each  letter  you  will  need  to  have 

Whenever  a  letter  is  sent  out,  a  tallymark  is  duplicated.     It's  a  foolish  waste  of  money  to 

placed  in  the  '  'used"  column.     At  the  end  of  have  nnore  form  letters  on  hand  than  you  need. 

88 


TIME-SAVING  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 


Note  that  each  of  these  letters  acknowledges  the 
receipt  of  the  order  and  takes  up  in  addition  only  one 
point — in  one  case  a  request  for  a  cash  payment;  in 
another,  mention  of  the  omission  of  part  of  the  goods 
because  the  remittance  failed  to  cover  the  entire  cost ;  in  a 
third,  notice  to  the  effect  that  a  Hne  of  goods  has  been 
discontinued;  and  so  on.  Whenever  several  of  these 
points  come  up  in  connection  with  the  same  order,  the 
form  letter  is  set  aside  and  a  special  letter  is  dictated 
from  the  form  paragraph  book.  Where  a  decidedly 
personal  situation  exists,  not  even  the  paragraphs  suffice. 
But  the  number  of  letters  which  filter  through  to  special 
dictation  is  insignificant. 

To  be  thoroughly  economical  in  using  these  form 
letters,  you  must  determine  with  approximate  accuracy 
how  many  of  each  kind  you  need  in  a  week  or  month. 
This  office  manager  made  his  original  analysis  and 
estimate  by  checking  back  through  his  correspondence 
files  for  two  months.  You  can  do  the  same,  or  you  can 
have  your  stenographer  put  a  checkmark  in  the  blank 
space  left  for  the  purpose  on  the  fist  of  order  form 
letters  (Figure  13)  whenever  you  use  one  of  the  letters. 

Taking  the  results  of  this  study  for  a  period  covering 
a  month  or  more,  you  can  easily  tell  which  of  the  letters 
you  need  to  have  duphcated  in  large  quantities.  Per- 
haps you  will  find  you  use  enough  of  six  or  seven  of  the 
letters  so  that  it  is  profitable  to  have  a  supply  of  them 
on  hand,  ready  for  mailing  as  soon  as  a  typist  fills  in 
the  name  and  address. 

But  be  sure  you  avoid  the  mistake  of  one  Kansas 
manager.  He  had  his  office  boy  run  off  1,000  copies  of 
a  letter,  only  to  find  out  afterward  that  he  used  scarcely 
a  copy  a  day  of  that  particular  form.  The  duphcated 
lot  lay  in  his  stock  room  accumulating  dust  for  nine 
months.  At  the  end  of  that  time  the  remainder — more 
than  700 — were  thrown  into  the  waste  basket  because  they 
were  too  much  soiled  to  send  to  customers. 

A  wholesale  executive,  having  made  careful  esti- 
mates, has  set  maximum  and  minimum  limits  for  his 
duplicated  letters.  He  also  provides  a  double  check 
against  ever  being  caught  out  of  stock  on  any  form. 
This  he  accomphshes  by  demoting  sections  in  his  own 
desk  tickler,  as  well  as  in  that  of  his  stenographer,  to 
the  various  form  letters. 


This  is  impor- 
tant in  using 
form  letters 


How  one  mana- 
ger  analyzed 
his  letters 


Mistakes  like 
this  are  costly 


89 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


A  card  that  Each  letter  has  a  separate  card,  which  shows  how 

watches  the  long  the  supply  is  fairly  sure  to  last.     The  cards  are  filed 

supplies  in  the  stenographer's  record  to  come  up  20  days  in 

advance  of  the  limit;  and  in  the  executive's  file  to  come 
up  10  days  in  advance.  When  the  card  comes  up  in 
the  stenographer's  file  she  investigates,  perhaps  has  the 
maximum  supply  run  off,  and  again  forwards  the  card. 
The  emergency  card  in  the  executive's  tickler  is  an 
added  safeguard  against  a  shortage. 

The  effectiveness  of  your  duphcated  letter  is  greatly 
increased  if  the  fill-ins  are  made  accurately  and  neatly, 
with  perfect  alignment,  and  with  ribbons  that  match 
the  color  of  ink  used  on  the  manifolding  machine.    One 
One  method  of       company  has  solved  the  fill-in  difficulty  in  its  order 
handling^  department  by  using  pmple  ink  throughout  the  body 

jilL-ins  qI  ^y^q  letter,  and  having  nothing  but  red  ribbons  on  the 

typists'  machines.  This  method  is,  of  course,  perfectly 
obvious  to  the  man  who  understands  how  form  letters 
are  made;  but  it  does  not  affect  in  any  way  the  com- 
pany's trade  with  the  farmers  and  housewives  to  whom 
the  majority  of  its  letters  go. 

If  you  find  that  you  do  not  have  enough  use  for  a 
particular  form  to  warrant  running  it  off  in  large  quan- 
tities, have  your  stenographer  copy  it  entire  whenever 
it  is  needed.  This  method  obviously  does  away  with 
the  fill-in  difficulty,  and  gives  the  letter  a  more  personal 
effect.  Some  concerns  find  it  well  to  have  no  dupli- 
cated letters  at  all,  merely  keeping  its  complete  letter 
forms  with  its  paragraphs  and  giving  each  form  over 
to  be  copied  on  the  typewriter  as  it  is  needed.  If  the 
class  of  your  customers  is  uniformly  high,  and  each 
order  amounts  to  a  considerable  sum,  this  plan  may 
prove  best  in  your  own  business. 


90 


INDEX  TO  ORDER  LETTERS 


GOODS  ARE  BEING  SENT 

1100  Sending,  simply       .         .  ~      . 

1101  Sending  part,  not  enough  money  for  rest    . 

1102  Ordered  sent  from  factory  direct 

1103  Too  much  money  sent — ^rest  being  returned 
1104-1149      Use  these  numbers  for  additional  order 

letters        ..... 


PAGE      Constant  use  of  this 


92 
92 
92 

93 

93 


index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


GOODS  ARE  NOT  BEING  SENT 

1150  We  never  carried — credit  order.         .         .  96 

1151  We  never  carried — cash  order  ...  96 

1152  We  no  longer  carry — credit  order       .         .  96 

1153  We  no  longer  carry — cash  order         .         .  97 

1154  Require  cash — in  advance         ...  97 

1155  Out  of  stock — holding  order  on  file  .         .  97 

1156  Out  of  stock — not  holding  order — credit 

order  .....  98 

1157  Out  of   stock — not   holding  order — cash 

order  .....  98 

1 158  Amount  of  money  sent  not  sufficient           .  98 
1159-1199      For  additional  order  letters       .         .  98 


H 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


ORDER  LETTERS 

GOODS  ARE  BEING  SENT 

1100  Sending,  Simply 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

I  have  seen  that  your  goods  were  carefully 
packed  and  shipped.   They  should  reach  you 
now  in  (two  or  more)  days.  Let  me  know  if 
they  do  not  come  promptly,  or  if  you  have 
any  questions  to  ask  about  them. 

I  am  confident  that  you  will  be  thoroughly 
satisfied  with  this  shipment.   I  am  therefore 
looking  forward  to  other  orders  from  you  in 
the  near  future.  How  may  we  serve  you 
further? 

1101  Sending  Part— Not  Enough  IVIoney  for  Rest 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 
I  have  taken  pains  to  have  the  goods  packed 
and  shipped  just  as  you  directed.  However, 
since  the  amount  which  you  remitted  was  not 
quite  sufficient  to  cover  the  cost  and 
carriage  charges,  I  had  the  packers  omit 
(quantity  and  name  of  article  omitted) . 
The  difference  which  will  make  the  total 
remittance  correct  is  (amount).  Just  as  soon 
as  you  send  me  this  amount  I  will  see  that 
the  omitted  goods  are  sent  to  you  without 
delay. 

I  thought  you  would  want  me  to  omit  some 
of  the  goods  rather  than  write  for  the 
balance  and  keep  the  whole  shipment  waiting 
some  time. 

1 1 02  Ordered  Sent  from  Factory  Direct 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date) . 


92 


TIME-SAVING  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 


I  have  written  to  the  factory  which  makes      PhlasinjTre '" 
these  goods  for  us  and  asked  them  to  send 
your  shipment  direct.   It  will  reach  you 
promptly,  almost  as  soon  as  if  it  were  coming 
from  our  own  ware room. 

If  there  is  any  delay,  or  if  you  have  any 
questions  to  ask,  write  me  at  once.   I  feel 
a  personal  interest  in  seeing  you  satisfied 
and  pleased. 

1 1 03    Too  Much  Money  Sent— Rest  Being  Returned 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

The  amount  of  money  which  you  sent  was  more 
than  enough  to  cover  the  cost  and  carriage 
charges.   I  am  returning  you  the  difference, 
( amount ) . 

The  goods  have  been  packed  and  shipped  to  you 
today,  and  I  am  confident  that  you  will  be 
pleased  with  them.  Don't  fail  to  let  me 
know,  however,  if  anything  should  appear 
incorrect. 

1 1 04-1 1 49    Use  these  numbers  for  additional  order  letters 


93 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


94 


TIME-SAVING  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 


Use  this  page  tor  additional  paragraphs 


95 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  GOODS   ARE   NOT   BEING   SENT 

Phrasing  Here 

1150  We  Never  Carried— Credit  Order 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date) . 

I  am  afraid  there  is  some  mistake,  however, 
as  we  do  not  sell  these  goods  and  have  never 
carried  them.  I  am  having  the  sales  depart- 
ment send  you  a  catalog,  which  contains  a 
list  of  everything  we  handle,  with  the 
description  and  price. 

In  this  list,  I  hope,  you  will  find  just  the 
thing  to  supply  some  need.   I  am  sorry  we 
cannot  meet  your  request,  but  shall  give 
prompt  attention  to  your  further  orders. 

1151  We  Never  Carried — Cash  Order 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

I  am  afraid  there  is  some  mistake,  however, 
as  we  do  not  sell  these  goods  and  have  never 
carried  them.   I  am  having  the  sales  depart- 
ment send  you  a  catalog,  which  contains  a 
list  of  everything  we  handle,  with  the 
description  and  price. 

I  hope  you  will  find  in  this  list  just  the 
thing  to  supply  some  need.   I  am  sorry  we 
cannot  meet  your  request,  but  shall  give 
prompt  attention  to  your  further  orders.  The 
money  you  sent  is  returned  in  this  letter. 

1152  We  No  Longer  Carry— Credit  Order 

Your  order  of  the  (date)  has  just  come  in  and 
I  thank  you  for  it. 

I  am  sorry  to  have  to  tell  you,  however,  that 
we  no  longer  carry  this  line.   I  am  having 
the  sales  department  send  you  a  copy  of  our 
latest  catalog,  revised  to  date.   In  this 
list,  I  hope,  you  will  find  just  the  thing  to 
supply  some  need. 

I  wish  there  were  some  way  in  which  I  could 
be  of  greater  service  to  you  at  this  time. 
Please  let  me  know  if  there  is. 


96 


TIME-SAVING  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 


1153  We  No  Longer  Carry— Cash  Order  Note  Changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

Your  order  of  the  (date)  has  just  come  in  and 
I  thank  you  for  it. 

I  am  sorry  to  have  to  tell  you,  however,  that 
we  no  longer  carry  this  line.   I  am  having 
the  sales  department  send  you  a  copy  of  our 
latest  catalog,  revised  to  date.   In  this 
list,  I  hope,  you  will  find  just  the  thing  to 
supply  some  need. 

The  money  which  you  sent  is  going  back  to  you 
in  this  letter. 

I  wish  there  were  some  way  in  which  I  could 
be  of  greater  service  to  you  at  this  time. 
Please  let  me  know  if  there  is. 

1154  Require  Cash  in  Advance 

I  have  just  received  your  order  of  the  (date) 
and  thank  you  for  it. 

We  make  it  a  rule  to  sell  only  for  cash,  and 
for  this  reason  we  request  all  of  our  custom- 
ers to  include  the  money  with  their  orders. 
The  quick  turns  of  capital  which  such  a 
policy  enables  us  to  make  are  one  of  the 
reasons  why  it  is  possible  for  us  to  sell  our 
goods  cheaply.   I  know  you  would  not  want  me 
to  make  an  exception  to  this  policy  for  you. 

Your  order  amounts  to  (amount) .   Please  mail 
this  sum  to  me  today.  An  addressed  envelop 
is  enclosed  for  your  convenience. 

I  am  holding  your  goods  ready  to  ship  the  day 
your  remittance  reaches  us. 

1 1 55  Out  of  Stocl<— Holding  Order  on  File 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

We  are  out  of  these  goods  for  a  few  days,  but 
our  stock  will  be  replenished  about  (date). 

I  am  placing  your  order  on  file  in  my  desk, 
and  will  take  personal  care  to  see  your  ship- 
ment forwarded  the  day  we  get  the  new  stock. 


97 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In      ■)  f  55    Qut  of  Stock— Not  Holding  Order— Credit  Order 

Phrasing  Here 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

We  are  temporarily  out  of  these  goods,  and  I 
cannot  tell  you  definitely  just  when  our 
stock  will  be  replenished.  Since  it  is  more 
than  likely  that  there  will  be  a  delay  of 
several  weeks,  I  doubt  if  you  will  wish  me  to 
keep  your  order  on  file.  If  you  want  the 
goods  at  the  later  time,  will  you  please 
reorder? 

1157  Out  of  Stock— Not  Holding  Order— Cash  Order 

Thank  you  for  your  order  of  the  (date). 

We  are  temporarily  out  of  these  goods,  and  I 
cannot  tell  you  definitely  just  when  our 
stock  will  be  replenished.  Since  it  is  more 
than  likely  that  there  will  be  a  delay  of 
several  weeks,  I  doubt  if  you  will  wish  me  to 
keep  your  order  on  file. 

The  money  which  you  sent,  therefore,  is 
coming  back  to  you  in  this  letter. 

If  you  want  the  goods  at  the  later  time,  will 
you  please  reorder? 

11 58  Amount  of  Money  Sent  Not  Sufficient 

I  have  just  received  your  order  of  the  (date) 
and  thank  you  for  it. 

The  amount  of  money  which  you  sent  was  not 
quite  enough  to  cover  the  cost  and  carriage 
charges.  The  difference  is  (amount),  which 
I  will  ask  you  to  send  me.  An  addressed 
envelop  is  enclosed  for  your  convenience. 

I  am  holding  the  goods  packed  and  ready  to 
ship  just  as  soon  as  I  get  your  letter. 

1 1 59-1 1 99    For  additional  order  letters 


98 


TIME-SAVING  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


99 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


100 


CHAPTER  VI 


CUTTING  THE  COST  OF  ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


The  new  sales  manager  for  a  manufacturing  clothier 
was  searching  to  find  the  reason  why  some  of  the  com- 
pany's customers  had  become  dissatisfied  and  placed 
their  orders  with  other  concerns.  Running  through  the 
correspondence  files  for  several  months  back  he  found 
carbon  records  to  show  that  one  dealer  had  complained 
four  times  about  the  same  difficulty,  and  on  each  occa- 
sion had  received  an  impersonal,  sterotyped  reply  to  the 
effect  that  his  complaint  would  be  investigated  at  once. 
Through  neglect  the  complaint  had  dropped  there;  finally 
the  customer  became  disgusted  and  very  naturally  trans- 
ferred the  whole  of  an  annual  business  of  more  than 
$4,000  to  a  rival  firm. 

The  first  step  which  the  new  sales  manager  took  was 
to  insist  on  the  establishment  of  a  complaint  department. 
One  man  devoted  his  entire  attention  to  analyzing  and 
answering  complaint  letters.  The  causes  were  more 
thoroughly  investigated  than  ever  before,  so  that  within 
five  months  the  volume  of  this  part  of  the  correspondence 
was  cut  almost  in  haK.  In  the  case  of  complaints  which 
could  not  be  ehminated,  the  causes  were  classified  and 
a  comparative  record  kept  of  the  number  of  complaints 
under  each  heading.  RepHes  were  then  standardized  by 
using  form  paragraphs. 

Nothing  is  more  appreciated  by  the  average  customer 
than  a  fair  attitude  in  adjusting  claims.  The  complaint 
department  is  the  emery  that  grinds  away  the  friction 
in  business  dealings.  If  a  man  has  interest  enough  to 
"get  mad"  about  the  way  you  have  treated  him  and  tell 
you  about  it,  he  is  a  customer  worth  keeping.  If  your 
service  or  your  goods  give  him  any  cause  for  complaint, 
it  is  to  your  interest  not  only  to  conciliate  him,  but 
to  see  that  the  same  thing  does  not  happen  to  a  dozen 
other  customers.     He  has  put  his  finger  on  an  error  in 


This  method 
cost  $4,000  a 
year 


Cutting  com- 
plaint corre- 
spondence 
in  two 


101 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Letters  that 
don't  "get 
mad'' 


How  to  analyze 
complaints 


Another  advan- 
tage of  form 
letters 


your  plan  of  doing  business.  Complaints  point  the  way 
to  fuller  service.  One  concern  whose  annual  business 
is  large  never  thinks  of  questioning  the  correctness  of  a 
complaint — until  afterward. 

The  easiest  way  to  make  your  complaining  customer 
a  better  friend  is  to  admit  frankly  that  you  were  wrong — 
if  you  were;  and  do  what  he  wants  you  to — which  is 
usually  right.  If  he  happens  to  be  wrong,  an  open- 
minded  attitude  on  your  side  will  do  more  than  any 
argument  to  win  him  over. 

Consequently,  it  is  essential  to  avoid  the  appearance 
of  set  forms  and  phrases  in  replying  to  complaints.  At 
first  thought  it  would  seem  as  though  this  made  the 
use  of  form  paragraphs  difficult.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
however,  the  form  paragraph  has  been  found  especially 
valuable  in  this  department,  because  it  puts  a  cool  head 
in  the  place  of  an  angry  one. 

Analysis  will  show  you  that  similar  complaints 
inevitably  occur  day  after  day.  The  goods,  for  instance, 
were  not  received.  There  are  obviously  just  reasons 
for  this  fact.  The  first  possibility  is  that  they  have  not 
been  shipped;  the  second,  that  they  have  been  shipped 
but  have  not  yet  had  time  to  reach  the  customer;  the 
third,  that  they  have  been  lost  or  delayed  on  the  way. 

When  a  complaint  about  failure  to  receive  goods 
comes  to  you,  it  is  usually  easy  to  find  which  of  these 
three  reasons  is  the  cause,  and  to  proceed  to  explain 
matters  in  a  logical  paragraph  which  touches  on  every 
point  in  a  courteous  tone. 

Working  out  a  complaint  system  requires  first  that 
you  thoroughly  analyze  the  difficulties  which  often  come 
up,  and  carefully  work  out  a  "one  best"  series  of 
paragraphs.  Besides  the  assurance  that  every  letter 
will  receive  a  courteous  reply,  this  enables  the  executive 
to  have  the  records  kept  under  the  same  heads  and  so  to 
know  which  departments  are  most  frequently  at  fault. 

Following  the  analysis  on  page  63  made  by  the 
wholesale  clothier,  which  checks  closely  with  those  used 
in  various  other  fines,  most  complaints  fall  under  two 
general  headings.  In  one  class  are  the  instances  where 
the  quantity  of  goods  received  by  the  customer  is  wrong, 
and  in  the  other  class  examples  of  where  the  goods  have 
been  received,  but  the  quality  fails  to  suit — they  are  not 
what  the  customer  ordered  or  expected,  or  they  are 


102 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


How  do  you 
handle  '^ kicks'^ 
like  this? 


damaged.  Besides  the  varieties  of  complaints  that  fall  Paragraphs 
under  these  two  main  headings,  a  few  miscellaneous  that  answer 
difficulties  constantly  recur.  85%  of  the 

When  you  receive  a  complaint  about  any  one  of  these     complaints 
difficulties,  half  a  dozen  things  may  be  at  fault  and  it  is 
your  business  to  select  the  one  right  explanation.    How- 
ever, the  niunber  of  explanations  which  are  required  is 
really  not  very  large. 

One  firm  receives  on  the  average  65  complaints  every 
day.  Of  these  40,  or  more  than  61%,  are  answered  by 
the  use  of  form  paragraphs.  In  a  still  larger  concern, 
which  sells  thousands  of  different  articles,  85%  of  all 
complaints  are  so  answered. 

"Frankly,"  said  the  chief  correspondent  in  this  con- 
cern, "I  believe  our  letters  are  more  effective,  and  more 
personal,  than  if  the  average  correspondent  dictated 
every  reply  in  full." 

Here  is  an  ordinary  type  of  complaint,  picked  from  the 
day's  mail  in  a  big  sales  office: 

I  sent  you  an  order  two  weeks  ago  for  a 
Water  Heater  No.    125-A  in  your  catalog, 
and  a  Cream  Separator  No.   C-16.     The  cream 
separator  got  here  a  couple  of  days  ago, 
but  the  address  on  the  label  was  wrong  and 
I  didn't  get  it  from  the  railroad  till 
today.     The  gas  range  didn't  come  at  all. 
If  your  house  always  does  business  like 
that  I  don't  want  to  do  business  with  you. 

Glancing  through  this  letter  the  correspondent  notes     Form  para- 
two  distinct  complaints  that  call  for  an  answer:  (1)  a     graphs  handle 
delay  due  to  wrong  address;  (2)  a  purchase  not  received,     this 
He  must  satisfy  both  complaints  and,  regardless  of  the 
blame  or  of  his  own  feehngs,  must  mollify  the  customer 
for  his  just  discontent.    He,  therefore,  jots  down  on  the 
sHp  attached  to  the  letter  the  following  instructions  for 
the  typist  to  follow: 

12 Sixteenth 

232 No.  125-A  Water  Heaters 

265 

62 

When  the  letter  comes  back  to  be  signed,  it  fully  and 
tactfully  rephes  to  the  complaint,  and  leaves  the  impres- 


102 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


How  the  fin-  sion  that  the  house  has  been  glad  to  make  immediate 

ished  letter  and  personal  adjustment: 

Your  letter  of  the  sixteenth  has  just 
reached  us,    and  we  note  that  you  have  re- 
ceived only  part  of  your  order. 

Since  our  stock  of  No.    125-A  Water  Heaters 
was  temporarily  exhausted,   we  shipped  the 
other  item  on  your  order  without  waiting 
to   receive  our  fresh  supply.      We  thought 
you  would  want  us  to  do  this,    rather  than 
delay  the  entire  shipment.      We  expect  to 
have  our  stock  replenished  in  a  few  days, 
and  shall  take  pains  to  see  that  your 
order  is  filled  promptly. 

Your  address  has  been  changed  on  our 
Keeping  the  records  to  correspond  with  the  directions 

personal  tone  ^^  your  letter. 

Feel  assured  that  we  always  want  to  do 
everything  we  can  to  give  our  customers 
complete  satisfaction. 

When  you  have  developed  your  form  paragraph 
series,  you  may  sometimes  find  it  well  to  dictate  a  personal 
start  or  close,  to  show  the  customer  that  you  are  really 
giving  his  individual  problem  careful  attention.  But  the 
big  arguments  that  you  have  to  make  for  your  service, 
the  tactful  turn  of  a  word  or  sentence  that  smooths  the 
customer's  ruffled  temper — these  details  will  have  been 
worked  out  in  advance. 


104 


INDEX  TO  COMPLAINT  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 

10  We  frankly  apologize  .... 

11  You  have  not  received  goods 

12  You  ha\e  not  received  all  goods  ordered 

13  You  have  received  goods,  but  damaged 

14  You  have  received  wrong  goods    . 

15  Your  goods  are  unsatisfactory 

16  Simple  acknowledgment  of  letter  . 


PAGE 

107 
107 
107 
107 
107 
107 
107 


Constant  use  of  this 
index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


CLOSERS 

60 
'   61 

62 
63 
64 


Future  mistakes  will  be  avoided    . 

Regret  mistake  and  believe  solution  satisfac 

tory 

We  want  to  do  all  possible  . 
What  solution  do  you  suggest? 
Explanation  believed  satisfactory 


65-69      For  additional  paragraphs 


109 

109 
109 
109 
109 
109 


QUALITY  OF  GOODS  RECEIVED 

Not  What  Was  Ordered 

200  Shipping  department  mistake 

201  Order  department  mistake 

202  Our  records  right — we  are  refilling 
203-209      For  additional  paragraphs  . 


Damaged 

210 
211 


212 
213 
214 


Our  records  right — we  are  refilling 
Impossible  for  all  pieces  to  be  perfect — we  are 

refilling — please  return 
You  recover  from  the  railroad 
We  will  recover  for  you  from  railroad 
Shall  we  refill? 


215-219      For  additional  paragraphs    . 

Unsatisfactory 

220  You  may  return         ..... 

221  You  may  not  return  ..... 

222  Because  delayed  too  long — return — shipping 

instructions  ..... 


110 
110 
110 

no 


113 
113 
113 
113 
113 
114 
114 


115 
115 

115 


105 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Constant  use  of  this  Unsatisfactory  (continued)  PAGE 

to  memorize^the^°"  ^^^      Because  delayed  too  long— can  you  use  any- 


paragraph  numbers 


way?  .......  116 

224-229      For  additional  paragraphs    .         .         .  116 


QUANTITY  OF  GOODS  RECEIVED 
Only  Part 

230  Our  mistake — ^we  are  sending  rest        .         .  117 

231  Sent  in  separate  shipments  .         .         .  117 

232  Temporarily  out  of  stock — we  are  holding 

order  .......  117 

233  Permanently  out  of  stock — we  have  returned 

your  money  .         .         .         .         .  117 


None 


240  Not  yet  time  to  reach  you  .         .         .  119 

241  We  are  starting  tracer         .  .  .         .  119 

242  We  are  duplicating  shipment       .         .         .  119 

243  Order  never  received — we  are  filling     .  .  119 

244  Order  received — waiting  until  stock  is  re- 

plenished       120 

245  Order  received — we  want  cash  with  order     .  120 
246-249      For  additional  paragraphs    .         .         .  120 


MISTAKE  IN  BILL 


250  Our  fault — sending  new  bill         .         .         .  121 

251  Not  a  mistake — enclosing  revised  list  .         .  121 
252-259      For  additional  paragraphs    .         .         .  121 


MISCELLANEOUS 


260  Previous    complaint    not    answered  —  not 

received       ......  124 

261  Previous  complaint  not  answered — we  wrote 

—letter  lost?         .  .  •         .         .  124 

262  Previous  complaint  incompletely  answered  .  124 

263  Order  not  acknowledged — we  do  not  acknowl- 

edge      124 

264  Payment  not  acknowledged — we  wrote — lost?  124 

265  Address  wrong — we  are  changing        .         .  125 
266-269      For  additional  complaint  paragraphs     .  125 


106 


COMPLAINT  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 


10    We  Frankly  Apologize 


Your  letter  of  the  (date)  has  just  reached 
us,  and  we  want  to  say  frankly  that  we  owe 
you  an  apology. 

1 1  You  Have  Not  Received  Goods 

Your  letter  of  the  (date)  has  just  reached  us, 
and  we  note  you  have  not  yet  received  your 
goods . 

12  You  Have  Not  Received  All  Goods  Ordered 

Your  letter  of  the  (date)  has  just  reached  us, 
and  we  note  that  you  have  received  only  part 
of  your  order. 

13  You  Have  Received  Goods,  But  Damaged 

We  are  indeed  sorry  to  hear  that  goods  on  your 
order  were  damaged  when  they  reached  you. 

14  You  Have  Received  Wrong  Goods 

Your  letter  of  the  (date)  has  just  come  in,  and 
we  are  sorry  to  hear  that  the  shipment  of 
goods  which  you  have  received  was  not  the  goods 
ordered  by  you. 

15  Your  Goods  Are  Unsatisfactory 

We  are  sorry  to  hear  that  you  have  found  the 
goods  on  your  order  not  exactly  what  you 
wanted. 

16  Simple  Acknowledgment  of  Letter 

Your  letter  of  the  (date)  has  just  reached  us. 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


107 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


108 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


CLOSERS  ^°^'>  c'i3"9es  in 

Phrasing  Here 

60  Future  Mistakes  Will  Be  Avoided 

We  shall  do  everything  in  our  power  to  see  that 
such  a  mistake  does  not  happen  again. 

61  Regret  Mistake  and  Believe  Solution  Satisfactory 

More  than  we  can  say,  we  regret  that  this 
trouble  should  have  occurred,  and  our  effort 
has  been  to  adjust  the  matter  to  your  entire 
satisfaction. 

62  We  Want  to  Do  All  Possible 

Feel  assured  that  we  always  want  to  do  every- 
thing we  can  to  give  our  customers  complete 
satisfaction. 

63  What  Solution  Do  You  Suggest? 

We  want  to  be  perfectly  fair  in  handling  this 
matter.   What  solution  do  you  suggest? 

64  Explanation  Believed  Satisfactory 

We  believe  this  explanation  will  prove  entirely 
satisfactory  to  you. 

65-69    For  additional  paragraphs 


109 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  QUALITY  NOT  WHAT  WAS  ORDERED 

Phrasing  Here  ^ 

200  Shipping  Department  Mistake 

Apparently  our  shipping  room  made  the  mistake 
in  packing  the  goods,  as  we  had  your  order 
correctly  entered  on  our  books.  We  have 
directed  our  shipping  clerk  to  assemble  a  new 
shipment  at  once,  to  give  your  order  special 
attention,  and  to  see  that  it  is  right  in 
every  detail.  Kindly  return  the  incorrect 
shipment  to  us  at  our  expense. 

201  Order  Department  Mistalce 

The  mistake  was  due  to  an  entry  error  in  our 
order  department.  Our  shipping  clerk  has  re- 
ceived instructions  to  assemble  a  new  shipment 
at  once,  and  we  have  taken  special  pains  to 
see  that  it  is  correct  in  every  detail.  We 
ask  you  to  return  the  incorrect  shipment  to  us 
at  our  expense. 

202  Our  Records  Right— We  Are  Refilling 

Our  records  indicate  that  the  correct  goodjs 
were  sent,  and  we  cannot  locate  the  place 
where  the  error  was  made.  However,  we  are 
preparing  a  second  shipment,  and  it  is  leaving 
our  wareroom  today.  May  we  ask  you  to  return 
the  incorrect  shipment  to  us  at  once,  at  our 
expense? 

203-209    For  additional  paragraphs 


110 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


111 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


112 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


GOODS    DAMAGED  Note  changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

210  Our  Records  Right— We  Are  Refilling 

Before  your  order  left  our  warehouse  all  the 
goods  were  carefully  gone  over  to  make  sure 
that  they  were  perfect  in  every  respect.  How- 
ever, the  item  (items)  you  mentioned  must  have 
failed  to  catch  the  attention  of  our  inspec- 
tor. We  are,  therefore,  having  duplicate(s) 
packed  and  sent  forward  to  you  today.  Kindly 
return  the  damaged  goods  to  us,  at  our 
expense,  as  soon  as  possible. 

211  Impossible  for  All  Pieces  to  Be  Perfect— We  Are  Refilling— Please  Return 

Considering  the  number  of  articles  that  pass 
through  our  shipping  department  in  a  day,  it 
is  impossible,  even  with  thorough  inspection, 
to  see  that  all  of  them  are  absolutely  per- 
fect. Such  must  have  been  the  trouble  with 
the  item  (items)  in  your  order.  Our  shipping 
department  now  has  instructions  to  forward  a 
duplicate  (duplicates)  to  you  today.  Please 
return  the  damaged  goods  to  us  at  our  expense, 
and  with  as  little  delay  as  possible. 

212  You  Recover  from  the  Railroad 

The  goods  must  have  been  damaged  en  route,  as 
we  have  shipping  papers  to  show  that  the 
carrier  received  them  from  us  in  perfect  con- 
dition. You  should,  therefore,  be  able  to 
recover  the  full  amount  of  damages.  Please 
take  this  matter  up  with  the  local  claim  de- 
partment of  the  railroad.  Also  let  us  know 
if  we  shall  bill  you  under  another  consign- 
ment of  goods  to  take  the  place  of  those 
damaged . 

213  We  Will  Recover  for  You  from  Railroad 

The  damage  must  have  occurred  en  route,  as  the 
shipping  papers  in  our  files  show  that  the 
carrier  received  the  goods  in  perfect  condi- 
tion.  If  you  will  send  us  the  papers  which 
show  the  local  agent's  report  on  the  exact 


113 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  conditioii  of  the  goods  when  you  received  them. 

Phrasing  Here  ^ 

we  will  at  once  take  up  the  matter  for  you 
with  the  railroad  and  see  that  you  recover  the 
full  amount. 

214    Shall  We  Refill? 

Will  ycu  kindly  let  us  know  whether  we  shall 
send  other  goods  to  take  the  place  of  those 
which  you  received? 

21 5-21 9    For  additional  paragraphs 


114 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


GOODS    UNSATISFACTORY  Note  changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

220  You  May  Return 

As  a  general  rule  we  have  found  it  impossible 
to  allow  goods  to  be  returned.  You  can  see  that 
if  every  one  of  our  customers  were  allowed 
to  return  goods  with  which  some  personal 
reason  made  him  dissatisfied,  we  should  be 
unfair  to  ourselves.  However,  because  of  the 
special  circumstances  which  you  mention  in 
your  letter,  we  will  make  an  exception  for      , 
you.   In  returning  these  goods  to  us,  please 
be  sure  that  you  send  them  by  freight  (ex- 
press), charges  prepaid  (collect),  to  us  at 
(address) . 

221  You  May  Not  Return 

We  have  found  it  impossible  for  us  to  allow 
our  customers  to  inspect  goods  and  then  return 
them.  You  can  easily  see  how  the  extra  cost  of 
handling  such  goods,  unpacking  them  and 
putting  them  back  in  stock,  as  well  as  the 
extra  expense  in  the  bookkeeping  and  cor- 
respondence departments,  would  force  us  either 
to  go  out  of  business,  or  to  raise  the  price 
on  all  our  goods  to  cover  this  extra  expense. 
We  feel  certain  that  you  will  be  able  to 
put  these  goods  to  use  as  you  originally 
expected  to,  and  we  know  positively  they  will 
give  you  excellent  service. 

222  Because  Delayed  Too  Long— Return— Shipping  Instructions 

It  is  true  that  the  causes  for  this  delay  were 
outside  of  our  control.  However,  we  feel  your 
inconvenience  as  keenly  as  if  we  were  to 
blame,  and  we  value  your  satisfaction  as  our 
customer  more  than  any  small  loss  which  may 
come  to  us  on  the  transaction.  You  may  return 
the  goods,  therefore,  and  at  our  expense. 
Kindly  send  them  by  freight  (express)  collect, 
to  us  at  (address),  and  we  will  remit  at  once 
the  balance  due  you. 


115 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in      £23    Because  Delayed  Too  Long — Can  You  Use  Anyway? 
Phrasing  Here 

You  justly  realize  that  the  causes  for  this 
delay  were  beyond  our  control — in  fact,  we 
were  not  at  all  to  blame  in  the  matter.  Since 
this  is  so,  do  you  think  it  is  right  for  us 
to  assume  all  the  loss  incident  to  rehandling 
— if  you  are  to  return  the  goods  to  us — as 
well  as  the  loss  of  profit  on  the  sale,  and 
the  added  possibility  that  the  returned  goods 
may  be  damaged  in  transit  so  we  cannot  sell 
them  again?  Are  you  quite  sure  that  you  can- 
not find  use  for  the  goods?  Please  think  this 
over  carefully  before  you  reply 

224-229    For  additional  paragraphs 


116 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


ONLY  PART  OF  GOODS  RECEIVED  w-te  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 

230  Our  Mistake— We  Are  Sending  Rest 

It  was  purely  an  oversight  on  our  part  that 
all  the  goods  were  not  included  in  the  first 
shipment.   Our  shipping  department  now  has 
instructions  to  pack  these  goods  at  once,  and 
to  rush  delivery  on  them.  Your  order  should 
therefore  reach  you  within  two  or  three  days 
at  the  very  latest. 

231  Sent  in  Separate  Shipments 

You  did  not  receive  all  your  goods  at  one 
time  because  our  shipping  department  found  it 
advisable  to  make  two  shipments  of  them.  Your 
second  shipment  should  reach  you  now  in  a  very 
short  time — probably  before  this  letter  does. 
If  there  is  any  further  delay,  please  let  us 
know  at  once  so  that  we  can  take  such  action 
as  may  seem  advisable. 

232  Temporarily  Out  of  Steele— We  Are  Holding  Order 

Since  our  stock  of  (name  of  article)  was 
temporarily  exhausted,  we  shipped  the  other 
item  (items)  on  your  order  without  waiting  to 
receive  our  fresh  supply.  We  thought  you 
would  want  us  to  do  this  rather  than  delay  the 
entire  shipment.  We  expect  to  have  our  stock 
replenished  in  a  few  days,  and  shall  take 
pains  to  see  that  your  order  is  filled 
promptly. 

233  Permanently  Out  of  Stock— We  Have  Returned  Your  Money 

The  reason  the  (name  of  article)  was  (were) 
not  included  in  your  shipment  was  that  we  no 
longer  handle  this  class  of  goods.  We  noti- 
fied you  of  this  at  the  time  we  shipped  the 
rest  of  your  order,  and  enclosed  in  our  letter 
a  remittance  for  the  difference  which  this 
omission  made  in  your  bill.  If  the  letter 
and  money  failed  to  reach  you,  will  you 
please  notify  us  at  once,  so  that  we  can  make 
a  further  adjustment 


117 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphg 


118 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


NO    GOODS    RECEIVED  Note  changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

240  Not  Yet  Time  to  Reach  You 

We  find  on  looking  through  the  records  of  our 
shipping  department  that  the  goods  left  the 
wareroom  on  the  (date) .  Therefore,  it  was 
hardly  possible  for  them  to  have  reached  you 
at  the  time  you  wrote  to  us.  If,  however, 
they  have  not  arrived  by  the  time  you  receive 
this  letter,  will  you  please  let  us  know  at 
once,  so  that  we  may  duplicate  the  shipment  to 
you  and  start  a  tracer? 

241  We  Are  Starting  Tracer 

Our  records  show  that  your  goods  left  the 
wareroom  on  the  (date).  They  should  have 
reached  you  by  this  time.  Occasionally,  how- 
ever, shipments  are  misplaced  by  the  rail- 
roads, or  unnecessarily  delayed.  We  have 
started  a  tracer  today  to  find  out  what  the 
trouble  is.  If  the  goods  cannot  be  located  in 
four  or  five  days,  we  shall  not  allow  you  to 
■  be  delayed  longer,  but  shall  forward  a  dupli- 
cate shipment. 

242  We  Are  Duplicating  Shipment 

Your  goods  left  our  wareroom  on  the  (date), 
and  should  have  reached  you  by  this  time. 
Apparently,  however,  they  have  been  lost  or 
delayed  somewhere  on  the  way.  In  order  not 
to  keep  you  waiting  any  longer  we  are  dupli- 
cating the  shipment.  It  should  reach  you  now 
in  a  day  or  so.  If  both  shipments  should 
arrive,  will  you  see  that  one  of  them  is 
returned  to  us*^ 

243  Order  Never  Received— We  Are  Filling 

We  have  no  record  that  your  order  ever  reached 
us.  It  must  have  been  lost  in  the  mails, 
since  it  is  improbable  that  it  should  have 
been  misplaced  after  we  received  it.  We  have, 
therefore,  considered  the  memorandum  in  your 
letter  as  an  order,  and  special  instructions 


no 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Ph!asi?Hre'"  have  been  sent  to  the  shipping  department  to 

rush  your  goods  to  you  at  once. 

244  Order  Received — Waiting  Until  Stock  is  Replenished 

Your  order  was  received,  but  our  stock  of 
(name  of  article)  happened  to  be  temporarily 
exhausted.  As  we  expected  a  fresh  supply  in  a 
very  short  time  we  did  not  notify  you  of  the 
delay.  Our  supply  has  now  been  received  (will 
be  here  in  a  day  or  so) ,  and  your  goods  will 
be  forwarded  just  as  soon  as  our  shipping 
department  can  get  them  packed. 

245  Order  Received— We  Want  Cash  With  Order 

We  wrote  you  on  the  (date)  in  regard  to  your 
goods  and  stated  that  it  is  a  rule  in  our  firm 
always  to  require  cash  with  the  order.  This 
is  done  purely  for  the  benefit  of  the  majority 
of  our  customers,  so  that  we  can  maintain  our 
uniformly  low  prices;  for  our  business  is 
conducted  on  so  narrow  a  margin  of  profit  that 
the  expense  of  keeping  books  and  collecting  by 
mail  would  necessitate  an  increase  in  our 
prices.  Our  letter  must  have  been  lost,  for 
which  we  are  sorry,  as  it  has  caused  you  a 
delay.  Send  us  your  remittance  (amount) 
today,  and  we  will  see  that  your  goods  are 
rushed  to  you  at  once. 

246-249    For  additional  paragraphs 


120 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


MISTAKE    IN    BILL  Note  Change3  m 

Phrasing  Here 

250  Our  Fault— Sending  New  Bill 

The  mistake  was  due  to  a  clerical  error  in  our 
billing  (shipping)  department.  We  have  made 
the  correction  on  our  books,  and  your  revised 
bill  accompanies  this  letter.  Please  destroy 
the  incorrect  statement  which  you  now  have. 

251  Not  a  Mistake— Enclosing  Revised  List 

The  revised  list  (catalog)  accompanying  this 
letter  will  show  you  that  the  price  of  (name 
of  article)  is  now  (unit  price).  This 
accounts  for  the  apparent  discrepancy  which 
you  have  mentioned. 

252-259    For  additional  paragraphs 


Ul 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


X22 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS- 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


123 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  MISCELLANEOUS 

Phrasing  Here 

260  Previous  Complaint  Not  Answered— Not  Received 

Probably  your  other  letter  was  lost  on  the 
way,  as  we  never  received  it.  We  are  sorry 
that  you  have  been  kept  waiting  for  your 
answer,  but  we  want  you  to  know  that  it  was 
not  our  fault  that  you  failed  to  hear  from  us 
before. 

261  Previous  Complaint  Not  Answered— We  Wrote— Letter  Lost? 

You  have  reason  to  wonder  why  you  have  not 
heard  from  us.  We  wrote  you  on  the  (date), 
answering  your  letter  fully,  but  this  reply  of 
ours  must  have  been  lost  on  the  way. 

262  Previous  Complaint  Incompletely  Answered 

We  tried  to  make  our  first  letter  clear  and 
explicit,  and  we  thought  we  had  covered  all 
the  points.  We  are  always  glad,  however,  to 
have  you  call  our  attention  to  a  question  of 
this  sort,  for  we  want  our  customers  to  under- 
stand us  perfectly. 

263  Order  Not  Acknowledged— We  Do  Not  Acknowledge 

Your  order  was  received  by  us  on  the  (date) 
and  entered  for  immediate  shipment.  We  do  not 
make  a  practice  of  acknowledging  orders,  as  we 
find  that  most  of  our  customers  do  not  con- 
sider it  necessary.  The  amount  of  postage 
saved  in  this  way  is  a  big  sum  at  the  end  of 
the  year,  and  this  seemingly  little  economy 
is  one  of  the  factors  that  make  it  possible 
for  us  to  maintain  low  prices  on  our  goods. 

264  Payment  Not  Acknowledged— We  Wrote— Lost? 

Your  remittance  never  reached  our  office.  It 
must  have  been  lost  on  the  way,  possibly  be- 
cause of  a  defective  address.  If  you  will  go 
to  your  local  postmaster,  he  will  supply  you 
with  a  tracer,  and  probably  the  post  office 
authorities  can  locate  the  lost  letter.  Unless 


124 


ADJUSTING  COMPLAINTS 


you  remitted  in  currency  you  are  not  likely  to  ^hlL^Here '" 
lose  any  money  even  if  the  letter  is  not 
found,  for  a  money  order  or  check  drawn  in  our 
favor  could  be  redeemed  only  by  us. 

265    Address  Wrong— We  Are  Changing 

Your  address  has  been  changed  on  our  records 
to  correspond  with  the  directions  in  your 
letter. 

266-269    For  additional  miscellaneous  complaint  paragraphs 


125 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


126 


CHAPTER  VII 


FORM  LETTERS  THAT  HANDLE  COMPLAINTS 


"Here  I  have  a  definite  statement  of  the  inefficiencies 
of  my  business,  as  they  strike  my  customers,"  said  one 
executive  of  a  concern  with  a  country-wide  reputation, 
as  he  tossed  a  5  by  8  card  across  his  desk. 

On  this  card  (Figure  14)  the  complaint  department 
in  this  concern  summarizes  every  month  the  number 
of  complaint  letters  received,  together  with  the  depart- 
ment at  fault.  Day  by  day  these  incoming  letters  are 
tabulated  and  analyzed.  The  monthly  summary  shows 
the  manager  at  a  glance  where  carelessness  or  inefficiency 
is  beginning  to  creep  in. 

*' You  see,  in  department  8,"  continued  the  executive, 
"the  complaints  suddenly  jumped  in  June  from  an 
average  of  10  or  12  each  month  to  54.  Department  8 
is  the  shipping  room.  We  installed  a  new  system  there 
early  in  that  month,  and  a  lot  of  confusion  was  inevitable. 
Notice  that  in  July  complaints  came  down  to  26;  while 
in  August,  after  the  system  had  been  put  into  thorough 
working  order,  the  number  dropped  to  5,  and  that  has 
been  the  average  ever  since — lower  than  it  was  before 
the  change  by  about  half. 

"Now  take  the  entry  department,  number  5,  starting 
with  May;  16  complaints.  I  did  not  consider  that 
excessive,  for  we  had  a  new  clerk  doing  most  of  the  work 
there.  But  you  see  in  June  and  July  the  number  was 
larger  instead  of  smaller — it  jumped  to  23  and  29.  I 
had  to  replace  the  new  man  we  were  trying  out  there 
with  a  careful  clerk,  and  notice  the  change!  The 
average  now  runs  about  6,  6,  5,  6,  6,  4." 

A  simple  report  such  as  this  is  invaluable  for  the 
proprietor  of  any  office  or  shop  where  much  business  is 
done  by  letter.  Complaints  index  definitely  the  mistakes 
in  business  routine;  moreover,  in  answering  the  letters 
of  customers  who  are  dissatisfied  with  your  goods  or 
service,  the  correspondent,  by  the  tactful  and  personal 


Records  that 

watch 

complaints 


Keeping  tab  on 
each    depart- 
ment 


127 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Standard 
letters  meet 
many  needs 


Why  typed 
letters  are  some- 
times best 


How  one  man 
uses  form 
letters 


handling  of  each  case,  can  supplement  in  a  very  helpful 
way  the  work  of  the  sales  department. 

For  the  routine  complaints,  and  those  in  which  only 
one  point  is  brought  up,  you  will  find  that  you  can  have  on 
your  desk  a  series  of  standard  letters  which  will  cover 
many  instances.  The  business  man  who  is  wise,  however, 
always  makes  some  extra  provision  to  prevent  careless 
use  of  a  form  letter  to  answer  complaints  it  does  not 
exactly  fit.  You  may  either  dictate  the  numbers  of  the 
answering  letters  yourself  or  delegate  the  work  to  a 
thoroughly  responsible  correspondent. 

The  weight  of  experience,  moreover,  is  not  to  have 
your  complaint  letters  manifolded.  Better  go  to  the 
added  expense  of  having  each  one  typed  complete,  as 
needed,  rather  than  to  lose  a  customer  by  a  careless  fill-in 
which  will  reveal  at  a  glance  the  fact  that  you  have 
answered  a  red-hot  complaint  with  a  stock  reply. 

The  following  series  of  complaint  letters  was  based 
primarily  on  the  analysis  of  one  business  man's  corre- 
spondence. As  checked  and  corrected  by  comparison 
with  the  complaint  routine  in  several  other  progressive 
concerns,  these  letters  will  serve  to  answer  the  majority 
of  complaints  that  confront  the  average  business. 

Variations  will  be  in  details,  rather  than  in  the  gen- 
eral analysis.  One  wholesale  grocer,  on  checking  over 
his  own  correspondence,  has  found  that  he  receives  a 
large  number  of  complaints  from  his  retail  customers 
about  spoiled  cheeses.  Experience  has  shown  him  that 
there  are  five  reasons  for  this:  they  have  grown  soft, 
they  have  been  gnawed  by  rats,  changes  in  the  weather 
have  affected  them,  and  so  on.  All  of  these  causes  fall 
under  the  general  heading  of  goods  damaged  after  leaving 
the  house.  The  grocer  has,  however,  developed  for  his 
own  use  a  special  series  of  five  form  letters  Whenever 
he  receives  a  complaint  of  this  sort,  he  quickly  selects 
the  right  letter  to  be  typed,  and  does  not  have  to  take 
the  trouble  of  dictating  separate  replies  every  time. 

You  can  Hkewise  note  quickly  the  variations  from 
the  analysis  that  arise  in  your  own  business.  Strike 
out  a  phrase  here  and  there  if  it  fails  to  fit,  or  add  a 
standard  sentence  or  paragraph  in  the  margin,  as  ex- 
perience shows  you  it  is  necessary. 

As  you  start  to  dictate,  run  through  the  index  (Figiu-e 
15)  and  select  the  letter  w^hich  answers  the  complaint  in 


128 


REPORT  OF  COMPLAINTS 

.  .  .  _  ._ 

Department 

JAN. 

FEB. 

MAR. 

APR. 

MAY 

JUNE 

JULY 

AUG. 

SEPT. 

OCT. 

NOV. 

DEC. 

TOTAL 

1 

/ 

0 

i. 

/ 

/ 

/ 

3 

5 

0 

/ 

5. 

/ 

15 

2 

0 

0 

/ 

0 

cl 

0 

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0 

3 

3 

iH 

3 

^ 

H 

4 

3 

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3 

5" 

3 

y 

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r 

Fl 

4 

H 

0 

3 

Z. 

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:i 

^ 

3 

y^ 

5 

h 

7 

-V 

II 

;^ 

@) 

& 

^ 

6^ 

^ 

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f 

/  ^7 

6 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

/ 

0 

0 

C 

^ 

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0 

3 

7 

^ 

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5- 

0 

0 

e 

H 

s 

0 

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"i 

37 

8 

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r 

/. 

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9 

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<9 

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1 

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;/ 

10 

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7 

7 

i 

7 

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3 

7 

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11 

4 

r 

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12 

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0 

0 

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13 

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^ 

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-^ 

7 

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/ 

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^f 

14 

f 

V 

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/5_ 

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TOTAL 

7f 

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3f 

Vy 

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7  ?7 

FIGURE  14:    One  executive  finds  this  report  the  improvement  made,  if  any.     The  circled 

especially  helpful  in  following  complaints.    He  figures  call  attention  to  glaring  discrepancies 

can  see  at  a  glance  just  which  departments  and  point  out  which  conditions  are  the  ones 

are  the  worst  offenders,  and  the  totals  indicate  that  need  to  be  watched  with  particular  care. 

129 


COMPLAINT  FORM  LETTERS 

INDEX 

NUMBER 
USED 

TOTAL 

Quality  of  goods  received 

Not  what  was  ordered 

1200-1209 

Damaged   1210-1219 
Unsatisfactory   1220-1229 

1200    Shipping  department's  fault 

1201    Order  department's  fault 

1202    Mistake  where?  refilling 

1203    Mistake  where?  return  goods 
received  and  we  will  refill 

1210    Mistake  failed  to  catch  our 
attention 

1211    Mistake  where?  refilling 

1212    Every  piece  cannot  be  perfect 

1213    You  recover  from  railroad 

1 21 4    We  will  recover  for  you 

1220    You  may  return 

1221    You  may  not  return 

Quantity  of  goods  received 
None  1230-1239 

Only  part    1240-1249 

1230    Not  yet  time  to  reach  you 

1231    A  tracer  started 

1232    Order  not  received 

1233    Order  not  received;  tell  what 
it  was,  and  we  will  fill 

1240    Our  fault 

1241     Rest  out  of  stock 

Miscellaneous   1250-1259 

1250    Address  wrong 

125^    Order  not  acknowledged 
We  wrote 

1252    Order  not  acknowledged 
We  do  not  write 

1253    Remittance  not  acknowledged 
We  wrote 

1254    Remittance  not  acknowledged 
We  do  not  write 

Special  1260-1269 

1 

FIGURE  15:  Here's  a  form  with  a  dual  pur- 
ppse.  It  serves  as  an  index  by  which  the  cor- 
respondent can  select  at  once  the  form  letter 
which  suits  best  the  complaint  to  be  answered. 


It  also  helps  keep  tab  on  the  number  of  each 
letter  used  thus  indicating  which  letters  you 
will  need  a  large  supply  of,  and  which  a  smaller. 
This  way  you  can  avoid  having  an  oversupply. 


130 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


hand.     On  a  slip  attached  to  the  customer's  letter —     Building  up 
you  can  use  the  same  sheets  for  form  letters  and  para-    form  para- 
graphs — jot  down  its  number,  together  with  notations     graphs 
regarding  the  two  or  three  necessary  insertions. 

At  the  same  time  you  can  put  a  checkmark  in  the 
"number  used"  column  at  the  right.  When  you  have 
"dictated"  from  the  book  for  a  few  weeks,  you  will  know 
where  your  complaints  bulk  and  can  direct  your  efforts 
at  correction  accordingly.  In  the  space  left  blank  at 
the  bottom  of  the  chart,  note  unusual  complaints  which 
the  standard  letters  do  not  cover.  This  will  serve  you 
as  a  helpful  guide  in  writing  the  letters  that  are  pe- 
culiar to  your  own  business. 


ibl 


INDEX  TO  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


Constant  use  of  this 

QUALITY  OF  GOODS  RECEIVED 

index  will  help  you 

to  memorize  the 

Not  What  Was  Ordered 

PAGE 

paragraph  numbers 

1200 

Shipping  department's  fault 

134 

1201 

Order  department's  fault  .... 

134 

1202 

Mistake  where?    Refilling 

134 

1203 

Mistake  where?     Return    goods    received 

and  we  will  refill         .... 

135 

1204- 

1209      Use    these    numbers    for    additional 

complaint  letters 

135 

Damaged 

1210 

Mistake  failed  to  catch  our  attention 

138 

1211 

Mistake  where?     Refilling 

138 

1212 

Every  piece  cannot  be  perfect   . 

138 

1213 

You  recover  from  railroad 

139 

1214 

We  will  recover  for  you    .... 

139 

1215- 

1219      For  additional  letters 

140 

Unsatisfadory 

1220 

You  may  return 

141 

1221 

You  may  not  return          .... 

141 

1222- 

1229      For  additional  letters 

142 

QUANTITY  OF  GOODS  RECEIVED 
None 

1230  Not  yet  time  to  reach  you 

1231  A  tracer  started        ..... 

1232  Order  not  received — filling^ — credit  sale 

1233  Order  not  received .     Tell  what  it  was  and 

we  will  fill  .         .  ... 

1234-1239      For  additional  letters 

Only  Part 


1240  Our  fault 

1241  Rest  out  of  stock 
1242-1249      For  additional  letters 


145 
145 
145 

146 
146 


147 
147 

147 


MISCELLANEOUS 


1250  Address  wrong 

1251  Order  not  acknowledged- 


-we  wrote 


150 
150 


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MISCELLANEOUS  (continued)  page      Constant  use  of  this 

1252  Order  not  acknowledged,  we  do  not  write  .  150     \"^^^  ^"'.  ^^[^  y°" 
10C0       -D      Ui.             i      1         I  J     J                 J.  -.r-,      to  memorize  the 

1253  Remittance  not  acknowledged-we  wrote  .  151      paragraph  numbers 

1254  Kemittance  not  acknowledged — we  do  not 

write  ......  151 

1255-1259      For  additional  complaint  letters        .  151 


133 


In  this  margfn 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


GOODS  NOT  WHAT  WAS  ORDERED 

1200  Shipping  Department's  Fault 

You  have  good  reason  to  complain  for  getting 
the  wrong  goods  on  your  order. 

The  fault,  I  find,  rests  entirely  with  us  and 
I  am  having  a  readjustment  made  in  our  ship- 
ping department c  The  mistake  has  been  cor- 
rected and  a  new  shipment  is  going  forward  to 
you  today.  Please  return  the  other  goods  at 
our  expense. 

I  have  taken  personal  care  to  set  this  diffi- 
culty right,  and  give  you  complete  satisfac- 
tion.  I  am  confident  you  will  have  no  fur- 
ther trouble. 

1201  Order  Department's  Fault 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  your  goods, 
when  they  reached  you,  were  not  what  you 
orderedo 

The  fault,  I  find,  is  entirely  ours — the  or- 
der department  made  a  mistake  in  entering 
your  order.  I  have  had  your  original  letter 
looked  up  in  the  files,  and  a  second  shipment 
to  correspond  with  this  order  is  going  for- 
ward today.  Please  return  the  incorrect 
shipment  to  us  at  our  expense. 

I  have  gone  into  this  difficulty  personally 
for  you  and  am  confident  that  you  will  now 
find  everything  satisfactory. 

1202  Mistake  Where?    Refilling 

I  was  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  which  you 
received  were  not  what  you  ordered. 


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STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


I  cannot  understand  the  reason,  for  I  have     PhJi.iSrHere '" 
gone  over  our  records  from  beginning  to  end 
and  they  appear  correct  throughout. 

In  order  that  the  difficulty  may  be  settled 
to  your  complete  satisfaction,  however,  I 
have  had  a  new  shipment  made  up,  and  it  is 
being  forwarded  to  you  today.  Please  return 
the  other  goods  to  us  at  our  expense. 

This  mistake  has  had  my  personal  attention 
and  I  am  confident  that  you  will  find  every- 
thing arranged  satisfactorily. 

1203    Mistake  Where?    Return  Goods  Received  and  We  Will  Refill 

I  was  sorry  to  learn  that  your  goods,  when 
they  reached  you,  did  not  correspond  with 
your  order. 

I  have  had  our  records  gone  over  thoroughly 
and  have  not  been  able  to  find  where  the  mis- 
take crept  in.  However,  the  trouble  must  be 
straightened  out  to  your  satisfaction  at 
once.  Return  at  our  expense  the  goods  which 
you  have  received.  Just  as  soon  as  they 
reach  the  house  I  will  have  a  new  and  correct 
shipment  made  up  and  sent  to  you. 

This  order  will  receive  my  personal  atten- 
tion and  you  may  be  sure  of  perfect  satis- 
faction. 

1 204-1 209    Use  these  numbers  for  additional  complaint  letters 


135 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


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136 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


137 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  GOODS    DAMAGED 

Phrasing  Here 

1210  Mistake  Failed  to  Catch  Our  Attention 

I  was  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods,  when  they 
reached  you,  were  not  in  perfect  shape. 

Our  records  show  that  they  left  the  wareroom 
in  first-class  condition.  The  defect  which 
you  mention  must  have  failed  to  catch  the 
attention  of  our  inspectors.   In  order  not  to 
make  your  delay  in  using  the  goods  any  longer 
than  necessary,  I  have  had  a  new  shipment 
made  up  and  sent  to  you  today. 

Kindly  return  the  defective  goods  to  us  at 
our  expense. 

I  am  confident  that  this  order  will  not  give 
you  any  further  trouble.  Some  few  mistakes 
are  certain  to  occur,  but  you  may  rest 
assured  that  we  are  always  glad  of  the  chance 
to  rectify  an  oversight  made  by  any  depart- 
ment of  our  house. 

1211  Mistake  Where?    Refilling 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  in 
your  shipment  had  been  damaged  when  they 
reached  you. 

I  have  looked  up  the  shipment  in  our  records, 
and  so  far  as  I  can  find,  the  goods  left  us 
in  first-class  condition.  Somewhere,  how- 
ever, there  is  a  mistake  that  has  escaped  our 
notice  and  I  am  only  too  glad  to  have  the 
chance  to  make  it  right. 

Return  the  defective  goods  at  our  expense, 
and  a  new  and  perfect  shipment  will  go  for- 
ward to  you  at  once. 

I  shall  give  this  order  my  personal  attention 
and  you  may  count  upon  perfect  satisfaction. 

1212  Every  Piece  Cannot  Be  Perfect 

I  was  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  in  your 
shipment  proved  imperfect. 

138 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


In  spite  of  the  care  which  we  take  to  inspect  EasiSre'" 

all  goods  very  carefully  before  they  leave 

our  wareroom,  it  is  impossible  to  have  every 

piece  of  this  sort  perfect.   I  am  having  your 

order  refilled  and  sent  to  you  today.   Please 

return  the  defective  goods  at  our  expense. 

I  have  made  a  special  effort  to  see  that  this 
last  shipment  is  perfect.  You  may  count  upon 
its  being  right. 

1213  You  Recover  from  Railroad 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  on 
your  order  were  damaged  when  you  received 
them. 

When  they  left  our  wareroom  the  shipment 
was  packed  in  perfect  condition,  as  our 
receipt  from  the  railroad  shows.  The  goods 
were,  therefore,  damaged  on  the  way.  Your 
records  of  course  show  the  exact  condition 
in  which  you  received  the  goods.  Please  take 
the  question  up  with  the  local  claim  depart- 
ment of  the  carrier. 

Under  the  circumstances  you  should  have  no 
trouble  in  recovering  the  value  of  the 
damaged  goods. 

May  I  send  you  another  shipment  at  once  to 
replace  this  one? 

1214  We  Will  Recover  For  You 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  you 
ordered  v/ere  damaged  when  you  received  them. 

The  damage  must  have  taken  place  on  the  way, 
for  the  shipping  papers  in  our  files  show 
that  they  left  the  wareroom  in  first-class 
order. 

If  you  will  send  us  the  papers  which  show 
exactly  the  condition  in  which  the  shipment 
reached  you,  we  will  take  up  the  question  for 
you  with  a  view  to  recovering  damages  from 
the  carrier. 


139 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  jg  j^-^  youT  desire  to  have  another  consignment 

Phrasing  Here  ^^  goods  billed  you  at  once  to  take  the  place 

of  this  one?     We  will  gladly  do  this. 

1215-1219    For  additional  letters 


140 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


GOODS    UNSATISFACTORY  Note  changes  in 

Phrasing  Hero 

1220  You  May  Return 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  on 
your  order  did  not  suit  you  after  you  re- 
ceived them. 

Every  one  of  our  customers  is  to  be  thor- 
oughly satisfied  with  the  goods  which  we 
sell,  and  in  no  instance  do  I  want  a  customer 
to  keep  goods  which  he  does  not  like. 

Please  tell  me  more  definitely  just  what  was 
the  trouble.  The  reason  that  I  ask  is  that  I 
aim  to  make  changes  to  suit  our  customers 
wherever  possible. 

Return  the  goods  at  our  expense.  Your  sug- 
gestion will  more  than  repay  us. 

In  this  and  every  future  order,  your  satis- 
faction will  dictate  our  course. 

1221  You  May  Not  Return 

I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  that  the  goods  on 
your  order  did  not  exactly  suit  you  when  you 
received  them. 

Now,  I  am  going  to  talk  with  you  just  as  T 
would  if  you  were  sitting  here  in  my  office. 
You  know  from  the  low  prices  we  offer  that 
our  margin  of  profit  on  things  we  sell  is 
very  small.  If  we  were  to  take  back  goods  in 
such  instances  as  this,  you  understand  that 
the  extra  cost  of  handling,  packing  and 
unpacking,  putting  the  goods  back  in  the 
store  room,  the  extra  carriage  charges,  and 
so  on,  would  quickly  eat  up  our  profits  and 
work  a  hardship  on  every  one  of  our  custom- 
ers. We  would  have  to  raise  prices  all  along 
the  line. 

This  is  why  we  make  it  a  rule  to  describe 
everything  fully  to  our  friends  and  then  not 
take  back  goods  unless  they  are  actually 
damaged.  You  would  not,  I  am  sure,  want  me 


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THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Phlasin!  Here '"  "^o  make  an  exception  for  you  under  the 

present  circumstances. 

I  have  read  your  letter  very  carefully.   I 
feel  that  when  you  come  to  use  these  goods 
they  will  be  more  satisfactory  than  you  had 
expected;  and  the  values  themselves  are  real 
bargains. 

Write  and  tell  me  fairly  if  you  don't  feel 
the  same  way  that  I  do. 

1 222-1 229    For  additional  letters 


142 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


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143 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


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144 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


GOODS    WERE    NOT    RECEIVED  Note  changes  m 

Phrasing  Here 

1 230  Not  Yet  Time  to  Reach  You 

I  have  your  letter  in  which  you  say  that  the 
goods  on  your  order  of  (date)  have  not  yet 
arrived. 

These  goods  were  shipped  to  you  on  the 
(date).  You  will  see,  therefore,  that  they 
had  not  yet  had  time  to  reach  you  when  you 
wrote.  They  should,  however,  be  there  by  the 
time  this  letter  comes  to  you. 

I  want  you  to  let  me  know  if  there  is  any 
further  delay,  and  if  so,  we  will  make 
special  efforts,  you  may  be  sure,  to  serve 
you  promptly. 

1231  A  Tracer  Started 

I  have  your  letter  in  which  you  state  that 
you  have  not  yet  received  your  goods. 

The  goods  were  sent  from  our  wareroom  on  the 
(date)  and  should  have  reached  you  before 
this.   I  am  having  the  railroad  start  a 
tracer  to  find  out  where  the  shipment  has 
been  held  up.   I  should  hear  from  it  within 
four  or  five  days  at  the  most. 

Please  let  me  know  at  once  if  the  goods 
arrive  in  the  meantime. 

I  am  giving  the  shipment  my  personal  atten- 
tion and  I  shall  see  that  it  is  settled 
promptly  to  your  complete  satisfaction. 

1232  Order  Not  Received— Filling— Credit  Sale 

Your  letter,  in  which  you  state  that  the 
goods  on  your  order  have  not  arrived,  has 
just  reached  me. 

I  have  had  our  files  searched  very  carefully, 
but  the  order  department  has  no  record  of 
ever  having  received  the  order. 

You  doubtless  want  the  goods  as  promptly  as 
possible,  so  I  have  considered  your  letter  an 


145 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


phlasinSe'"      Order.   The  shipping  department  is  sending 
the  goods  to  you  today. 

I  am  very  sorry  that  you  have  been  put  to 
this  inconvenience  and  delay,  and  I  want  you 
to  write  me  at  once  if  this  shipment  fails  to 
arrive  promptly. 

1233    Order  Not  Received.    Tell  What  It  Was  and  We  Will  Fill 

I  have  your  letter  in  which  you  say  that  the 
goods  on  your  order  have  not  yet  arrived. 

Our  files  have  been  searched  very  carefully, 
but  we  have  no  record  of  ever  having  received 
the  order.  Please  write  at  once  and  tell  me 
exactly  what  the  items  were  which  you 
ordered.  I  am  sorry  that  this  occurrence  has 
caused  you  inconvenience  and  delay.  However, 
as  soon  as  your  reply  reaches  me,  I  will 
personally  take  care  to  see  that  the  goods 
are  sent  to  you  at  once. 

1 234-1 239    For  additional  letters 


146 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


ONLY    PART    OF   GOODS    RECEIVED  Note  changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

1240  Our  Fault 

You  are  perfectly  justified  in  complaining 
because  you  failed  to  receive  all  of  your 
goods.  The  oversight  was  purely  our  own. 

I  am  having  the  other  items  packed  and  sent 
to  you  today.  They  should  reach  you  now  in 
the  course  of  about  (number)  days. 

I  have  given  this  shipment  my  personal  atten- 
tion and  am  confident  you  will  now  find 
everything  satisfactory. 

1241  Rest  Out  of  Stock 

I  have  gone  through  our  records  to  find  out 
why  you  received  only  part  of  the  goods  which 
you  ordered. 

The  reason  is  that  we  were  temporarily  out  of 
stock  on  the  goods  which  you  failed  to 
receive.  The  shipping  department  filled  part 
of  your  order  rather  than  hold  up  the  entire 
shipment  until  the  fresh  supply  of  the  other 
goods  was  received.  We  felt  that  this  is 
what  you  would  want  done. 

The  rest  of  your  order  is  on  file  and  we  will 
fill  it  just  as  soon  as  the  goods  reach  our 
wareroom. 

I  am  giving  your  order  my  personal  attention, 
and  you  will  find  the  rest  of  your  shipment 
coming  through  very  shortly. 

1 242-1 249    For  additional  letters 


147 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


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148 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


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149 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  In  MISCELLANEOUS 

Phrasing  Here 


1250  Address  Wrong 

I  have  just  received  your  letter  in  which  you 
say  that  we  have  your  address  wrong  on  our 
records.  I  have  had  it  corrected  according 
to  your  directions  and  your  future  orders 
will  be  handled  accordingly. 

Thank  you  for  calling  my  attention  to  the 
errorc 

I  hope  you  have  not  been  put  to  any  incon- 
venience by  it. 

1251  Order  Not  Acknowledged— We  Wrote 

I  have  your  letter  in  which  you  say  that  you 
received  no  acknowledgment  of  the  order  you 
sent  us  recently. 

On  looking  through  the  files  I  find  that  we 
wrote  you  on  the  (date),  the  day  we  received 
your  order=  The  letter,  therefore,  seems  to 
have  been  lost  on  the  way.  Please  consider 
this  letter  an  acknowledgment  and  accept  our 
thanks  for  the  order. 

I  find  that  your  goods  were  (will  be)  shipped 
on  (date).  Let  us  know  if  there  is  any 
attention  which  I  can  give  to  the  matter  in 
your  interest. 

1252  Order  Not  Acknowledged— We  Do  Not  Write 

I  have  your  letter  in  which  you  state  that 
you  received  no  acknowledgment  of  your  order. 

The  reason  is  that  we  do  not  make  a  practice 
of  acknowledging  orders  unless  some  trouble 
or  delay  appears  in  filling  them.  We  find 
that  this  saves  considerable  postage  each 
day  and  in  the  end  is  thus  of  advantage  to 
our  customers  in  lower  prices. 

I  have  gone  through  our  records,  and  find 
that  your  goods  were  (will  be)  shipped  on 
(date).  Let  me  know  if  there  is  any  further 


150 


STANDARD  COMPLAINT  LETTERS 


attention  which  I  can  give  the  order  in  your       JfhrasinjHere '" 
interest,   or  if  there  is  any  further  need  you 
wish  supplied  at  this  time. 

1253  Remittance  Not  Acknowledged— We  Wrote 

I  have  just  read  your  letter  in  which  you 
mention  that  you  received  no  acknowledgment 
of  your  remittance  of  (amount) . 

On  looking  through  the  files  I  find  that  we 
wrote  you  on  the  (date),  the  day  we  received 
the  money.  Our  letter  must  have  gone  astray 
on  the  way. 

Please  consider  this  letter  your  acknowledg- 
ment. We  always  endeavor  to  acknowledge  and 
ship  promptly,  as  in  this  way  we  can  best  win 
your  steady  trade. 

1254  Remittance  Not  Acknowledged — We  Do  Not  Write 

I  have  just  read  your  letter  in  which  you 
mention  that  you  received  no  acknowledgment 
of  your  remittance  of  (amount). 

The  reason  is  that  we  do  not  make  a  practice 
of  acknowledging  payments  unless  specially 
requested.  Checks,  when  indorsed,  form  their 
own  receipts,  and  it  has  been  our  experience 
that  currency  and  money  orders  are  very 
rarely  lost  in  the  mails.  The  saving  in 
correspondence  bills  is  an  item  in  keeping 
our  prices  low  to  you. 

Please  consider  this  letter  an  acknowledgment 
and  allow  us  to  serve  you  again. 

1 255-1 259    For  additional  complaint  letters 


151 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


152 


CHAPTER  VIII 

STANDARD  PARAGRAPHS  THAT  COLLECT 

Fingering   through   the   little  pile  of  cards  that  the    How  the  collec- 
tickler  file  had  brought  up  for  his  consideration  that  day,     Hon  man  "gets 
the   collection  man  in  a  wholesale  grocery  noticed  the     action' * 
name  of  a  small-town  dealer  who  was  usually  very 
prompt   in   paying.    Already   one  letter   had  failed  to 
bring  either   the  remittance    or    the    dealer's    reason. 
Feehng  that  some  extraordinary  cause  must  be  at  the 
bottom  of  this  delay,  the  collection  man  "dictated" 
a  letter  from  the  paragraph  book. 

The  completed  letter,  which  follows,  makes  an  urgent 
demand  for  a  remittance  or  at  least  the  courtesy  of  a 
reply  explaining  non-payment,  but  contains  nothing  to 
offend  the  customer: 

24 

21 seventeenth 

301 

300 ; third 

75 

There  must  be  some  good  reason  or  we        This  is  the 
should  have  had  a  letter.  letter  that 


Why  has  our  letter  of  the  seventeenth 
brought  no  reply  from  you? 

If  payment  is  impossible  now,  tne  only 
fair  thing  is  for  you  to  write  us  or 
call  at  our  office  at  once  and  take  up 
this  matter  with  us. 

Enclosed  is  a  memorandum  of  the  bill. 
Payment,  as  you  will  notice,  was  due  on 
the  third. 

Let  us  hear  from  you  at  once. 


153 


pulled 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Adapting  the  Far  more  annoying  to  the  collection  man  than  this 

letter  to  the  type  of  debtor  is  the  customer  with  whom  delay  is  a 

need  habit.    Statements  slip  into  pigeonholes  in  his  desk, 

and  routine  collection  letters  are  treated  with  scarcely 
more  regard  than  the  circulars  in  the  day's  mail.  It  is 
the  policy  of  one  keen  collection  manager,  who  is  quick 
at  "spotting"  such  debtors  in  his  list,  to  assume  a  tone 
throughout  his  letter  series  which  gradually  teaches 
them  to  pay  him  promptly. 

The  following  is  the  second  letter  "dictated"  from 
the  paragraph  book  to  a  customer  habitually  slow: 

This  letter  20 S76.46;  18  days 

solves  a  difficult  ^0^ 

problem  225 

75 

76 May  1 

Your  bill   for  $76.46  is  now  18  days 
overdue. 

We  don't  want  to  think  you  are  trying  to 
evade  payment.     However,   that  is  the 
conclusion  we  shall  have  to  come  to  if 
you  continue  to  leave  our  letters  lying 
on  your  desk  without  a  reply. 

A  "stock^*  You  want  to  keep  your  credit  perfectly 

letter  that  fits  clear.      The  only  sure  way  to  do  this,   as 

you  well  know,    is  to  pay  your  bills 
promptly  as  they  fall  due.     Any  delay  is 
liable  to  cause  a  bad  impression,   which 
you  will  find  it  very  difficult  to  get 
rid  of  later  on. 

Let  us  hear  from  you  at  once. 

We  must  have  your  definite  reply  by 
May  1. 

However  careless  the  debtor's  reading  of  such  a  letter 
has  been,  the  ultimatum  mentioned  in  the  last  line  is 
likely  to  chng  in  his  mind  and  bother  him.  So  closely 
does  the  letter  fit  him  that  he  feels  himself  constantly 
imder  the  collection  manager's  scrutiny. 

When  he  is  writing  to  women,  the  collection  man 
generally  recognizes  that  inexperience  and  forgetfulness 

154 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


frequently  underlie  delays,  and.  that  women  often  lack 
the  methods  which  remind  a  man  to  treat  his  obhgations 
in  a  businesslike  way.  They  are  more  apt,  also,  to 
feel  affronted  if  they  are  approached  with  an  awkward 
or  inopportune  request  for  payment.  All  these  points 
must  be  considered  in  writing  effective  letters. 

Finding  that  one  of  his  women  customers  paid  her 
bills,  but  paid  them  about  when  she  chose,  the  collection 
manager  of  a  retail  dry  goods  store  set  to  work  and 
wrote  a  second  letter  as  follows: 

320 

300 your;  the  first 

322 $6.50 

73 

Prompt  payment  of  bills  by  our  customers 
makes  it  possible  for  us  to  sell  goods  more 
cheaply.     When  our  money  comes  in  regularly 
on  the  date  due,   we  don't  have  to  make  an 
allowance  for  extra  interest  charges  and 
add  a  percentage  to  all  selling  prices  to 
cover  the  amount.     You  benefit  by  the  low 
prices. 

Enclosed  is  a  memorandum  of  your  bill. 
Payment,   as  you  will  notice,   was  due  on  the 
first  of  last  month. 

Remember  that  we  have  hundreds  of  small 
accounts  like  this.     You  will  hardly  miss 
the  $6.50  which  you  pay  us  today;   but  if 
you  should  delay,   and  a  few  others,    too,    it 
would  soon  mount  up  to  a  big  sum  for  us. 

Kindly  arrange  to  call  and  make  this  pay- 
ment promptly. 

This  letter  gives  a  logical  reason  for  the  demand  for 
payment — the  low  prices  which  result — and  yet  contains 
nothing  at  which  the  customer  is  Uable  to  take  offense, 
or  which  is  not  absolutely  correct. 

Another  class  of  debtor  that  you  will  find  on  your  list 
occasionally  is  the  man  who  is  on  the  border  line  between 
good  and  bad  credit — the  man  whose  fortunes  or  reputa- 
tion have  been  going  against  him  of  late.  Following 
is  a  letter — the  second  in  the  series — to  such  a  debtor. 


Reaching  a 
^slow-pay" 


Better  than  a 
dictated  letter 


Perhaps  you 
have  seen  cus- 
tomers like  this 


155 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Writing  a 
letter  with 
seven  words 


Driving  the 
point  home 


Handling  a 
difficult  case 


The  collection  man  quickly  manages  to  come  up  to  the 
decisive  point: 

23 once;  fifteenth 

77 

325 

332 

75 

We  have  written  you  once  about  your  bill  of 
the  fifteenth.     No  reply  has  been  received 
from  you. 

Kindly  give  this  matter  your  immediate 
attention. 

You  want  to  keep  your  credit  perfectly 
clear.     The  only  sure  way  to  do  this,   as 
you  well  know,   is  to  pay  your  bills 
promptly  as  they  fall  due.     Any  delay  is 
liable  to  cause  a  bad  impression,   which 
you  will   find  it  very  difficult  to  get  rid 
of  later  on. 

We  extend  credit  to  our  customers  as  a 
special  convenience.      If  you  abuse  this 
privilege  by  not  paying  your  bills  promptly 
when  they  fall  due,   we  shall  be  obliged  to 
deny  you  the  use  of  the  privilege  of 
charging  your  purchases  in  the  future. 

Let  us  hear  from  you  at  once. 

The  decorator,  the  service  specialist,  and  especially, 
of  course,  the  professional  man,  must  recognize  that  his 
collections  for  some  reason  or  other  seem  a  more  delicate 
matter  than  where  merchandise  has  changed  hands,  and 
requires  more  careful  treatment.  In  most  cases,  however, 
the  insurance  or  the  legal  or  the  medical  client  is  person- 
ally known  to  the  creditor,  and  collection  paragraphs 
can,  for  this  reason,  be  picked  in  such  a  way  as  to  fit  the 
individual  case  very  closely.  Immediately  following  is  a 
letter  which  was  sent  by  two  doctors,  who  are  brothers 
in  business  together,  to  a  cUent  who  has  offered  as  an 
excuse  for  not  coming  to  time,  his  absolute  tnabihty 
since  the  illness  to  save  a  cent  more  than  $10  above  his 
regular  expenses.  You'll  admit  that  it  says  just  what 
it  should,  and  says  it  well. 


X56 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


22 difficulty,  and  inability  to  meet  your     How  the  letter 

payments  to  us  was  dictated 

315 $10;  $15;  April  15 

73 

75 

We  are  very  sorry  to  hear  of  your  diffi- 
culty and  inability  to  meet  your  payments 
to  us. 

We  want  to  help  you  out  as  much  as  pos- 
sible.     Send  us  $10  now.      For  the  re- 
mainder,  $15,   we  have  extended  the  date  to 
April  15,   when  your  temporary  difficulty 
should  be  over. 

Kindly  arrange  to  call  and  make  this  pay- 
ment promptly. 

Let  us  hear  from  you  at  once. 

Result-getting  collection  letters  approach  the  debtor     What  tone  to 
firmly,  with  not  the  slightest  appearance  of  doubt  or     take  in  your 
hesitation.    They  show  that  your  collection  pohcy  has     letters 
been  worked  out  fully  and  conclusively — that  you  know 
exactly  the  move  you  are  going  to  make  next,  let  the 
debtor  do  what  he  may.    He  on  the  other  hand  (if  your 
credits  have  excluded   the  professional   ''dead   beat") 
is  in  the  dark,  uncertain  just  what  to  expect.    Your 
whole  plan  should  indicate  that  you  know  your  mind, 
that  you  have   time-tested   resources  in  reserve,   and 
are  master  of  the  situation. 

The  first  principle,  therefore,  is  to  make  your  policy  Getting  a  broad 
broad  and  flexible.  Include  in  it  the  man  who  will  pay  collection  policy 
as  soon  as  he  gets  over  a  temporary  stringency,  as  well 
as  the  man  who  is  habitually  slow,  or  the  ''dead  beat." 
Always  show  fairness,  and  anticipate  requests  for  exten- 
sions which  conditions  justify;  but  never  under  any  cir- 
cumstances beg  for  payment.  You  are  in  a  position  to 
hold  the  reins  over  the  debtor. 

Once  you  have  brought  your  policy  to  this  breadth, 
you  need  never  fail  to  adhere  to  it.  Handling  a  dozen, 
30,  or  50  accounts  in  the  course  of  a  day,  all  in  different 
stages  of  collection,  it  is  difficult,  however,  for  you  always 
to  carry  out  a  broad  and  flexible  pohcy,  unless  you 
dictate  every  letter  carefully.    This,  except  in  special 


157 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


How  form  para- 
graphs give 
flexibility 


'' Saying  iV^  in 
the  best  possible 
way 


Letters  that 
^^  write  them- 
selves^^ 


cases,  is  too  expensive  in  the  average  business.  A  series 
of  form  letters  reduces  the  cost  and  labor.  But  when 
you  take  up  the  day's  Ust  of  delinquents  who  are  due  for 
follow-up,  you  gather  from  past  records,  or  feel  instinct- 
ively from  handling  the  accounts,  that  different  persons 
on  the  hst  should  be  approached  from  different  angles. 
With  your  poUcy  crystaUized  solely  into  form  letters, 
you  are  back  where  you  started — with  a  narrow  policy, 
to  which  damaging  exceptions  must  constantly  be  made. 

Form  paragraphs,  because  they  are  completely  flexi- 
ble, have  worked  out  with  marked  success  for  many 
collection  managers.  Not  only  manufacturers,  jobbers, 
and  retailers,  but  trade  and  professional  men  who  are 
selling  their  own  services  and  must  round  up  their 
accounts  by  personal  calls  or  letters  after  office  horn's, 
have  in  a  standard  collection  paragraph  system  some- 
thing permanently  useful.  A  logical  plan,  and  thorough 
famiharity  with  the  forms,  are  the  essentials  of  success. 
Each  paragraph  contains  one  idea  only,  one  argiunent, 
one  persuasive  plea  or  vigorous  demand  for  immediate 
payment,  phrased  in  language  that  fits  the  house  poHcy 
in  the  best  possible  way.  By  selecting  the  two,  three, 
or  half  dozen  paragraphs  which  convey  the  exact  shade 
of  feehng  you  wish  to  convey,  you  can  have  every  one 
of  your  collection  letters  highly  personal,  yet  entirely 
in  accord  with  the  general  plan. 

The  decisive  point  for  example,  may  be  reached  in 
the  second  or  third  letter;  or  you  can  grade  up  gradually 
with  half  a  dozen  letters  to  the  point  of  forcing  payment 
in  the  few  cases  where  necessary.  The  time  which 
paragraphs  save  makes  it  possible  for  you  to  devote 
more  attention  to  studying  the  past  record  of  the  debtors 
on  your  fist.  By  noting  their  individual  pecuharities 
and  methods  of  payment,  you  can  judge,  as  the  follow-up 
file  brings  name  after  name  to  yom-  attention,  what 
kinds  of  letters  should  be  written.  The  writing  wiU 
then  be  instantaneous. 

In  handling  your  own  collections,  classify  your 
debtors.  Get  clearly  in  mind  the  tone  you  wish  to 
adopt.  Many  adjustments  of  collection  policy  are 
embodied  in  the  form  paragraphs.  By  selecting  the 
right  paragraphs,  you  can  therefore  express  the  exact 
attitude  you  feel  you  want  to  express  toward  each 
successive  debtor. 


158 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


One  manager  almost  invariably  closes  his  first  letter     Keeping  the 
to  a  debtor  with  a  special  sales  paragraph,  telling  in  a     paragraphs 
friendly  way  about  goods  in  which  the  customer  may    Jresh 
be    interested.     These    paragraphs   he    redictates  from 
week  to  week,  thus  keeping  them  constantly  up  to  date. 
Letters  in  which  such  paragraphs  are  included  are  not 
so  much  intended  to  make  sales  as  to  appeal  for  payment 
by  means  of  a  friendly  attitude.    Letters  that  are  han- 
dled in  this  way  often  do  both. 

From  time  to  time,  the  manager  or  chief  of  corre- 
spondence may  profitably  dictate  such  selling  paragraphs, 
not  only  to  bring  sales  correspondence  up  to  date,  but 
for  the  use  of  the  order  and  collection  and  complaint 
correspondents.  An  effective  argument  or  clever  method 
embodied  in  a  paragraph  and  classified  under  one  of  the 
unassigned  numbers,  will  keep  your  paragraph  book  at 
the  highest  point  of  efficiency. 


159 


INDEX  TO  COLLECTION  PARAGRAPHS 


Constant  use  of  this      OPENERS 

PAGE 

index  will  help  you 

to  memorize  the                          20 

Yoior  bill  is  overdue     . 

162 

paragraph  numbers                      21 

We  wonder  why  no  reply     . 

162 

22 

Sorry  you  are  in  trouble 

162 

23 

Still  no  answer!  . 

162 

24 

Must  be  some  good  reason  . 

162 

25-29      For  additional  paragraphs 

162 

CLOSERS 

70 

Coin  card  enclosed 

165 

71 

Blank  check  enclosed  . 

165 

72 

Pin  amount  to  this  letter 

165 

73 

Call  and  pay 

165 

74 

Expect  to  hear  at  once 

165 

75 

Let  us  hear  at  once 

165 

76 

Reply  by  (date) 

165 

77 

Your  immediate  attention  . 

165 

78-79      For  additional  paragraphs 

165 

DEBTOR  GIVES  NO  REASON 

300 

Notice  of  payment  due 

166 

301 

If  you  can't  pay,  let  us  know 

166 

302 

Courtesy  of  a  reply  due  us 

166 

303 

No  reply — are  you  evading  payn 

lent?           .           166 

304-309      For  additional  paragraphs 

166 

DEBTOR  GIVES  REASON 

310 

Glad  to  help  out 

167 

311 

No  money — extension  granted 

167 

312 

No  money — accept  notes    . 

167 

313 

No  money — will  take  back  goodj 

3         .         .           167 

314 

No  money — require  payment  no 

w        .         .           167 

315 

Has  part  money — extension  grar 

ited  on  rest.           168 

316 

Has  part  money  —  return  goo 

ds  to  cover 

balance 

168 

317-319     For  additional  paragraphs 

168 

ARGUMENTS  FOR  PAYING  NOW 

320 

Prompt  payments  mean  cheaper 

goods         .          169 

321 

Clearing  up  ledger  accounts 

169 

160 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


ARGUMENTS  FOR  PAYING  NOW  (continued) 

322  One  bill  small — many  large 

323  Instalments — easily  paid  when  due 

324  You  are  not  being  fair 

325  Keep  your  credit  good 
326-329      For  additional  paragraphs    . 


PAGE 

169 
169 
169 
169 
170 


Constant  use  of  this 
index  will  help  you 
to  memorize  the 
paragraph  numbers 


IN  CASE  OF  NON-PAYMENT 

330  Harsh  methods  a  last  resort 

331  Definite  action  on  (date)    . 

332  You  will  lose  credit  privilege 

333  We  will  take  back  goods    . 

334  We  will  ask  payment  of  your  guarantor 

335  We  will  place  in  hands  of  lawyer 


171 
171 
171 
171 
171 
171 


161 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  In  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


COLLECTION  PARAGRAPHS 


OPENERS 


20    Your  Bill  Is  Overdue 


Your  bill  for  (amount)  is  now  (length  of  time) 

overdue. 

21  We  Wonder  Why  No  Reply 

Why  has  (have)  our  letter(s)  of  the  (date  or 
dates)  brought  no  reply  from  you? 

22  Sorry  You  Are  In  Trouble 

We  are  very  sorry  to  hear  of  your  (sickness, 
misfortune,  failure  to  find  work,  and  so  on). 

23  Still  No  Answer! 

We  have  written  you  (number  of  times)  about 
your  bill  of  the  (date).  No  reply  has  been 
received  from  you. 

24  Must  Be  Some  Good  Reason 

There  must  be  some  good  reason  or  we  should 
have  had  a  letter. 

25-29    Use  these  numbers  for  special  opening  collection  paragraphs  you  may  add 


i62 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


163 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


164 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


CLOSERS  Note  Changes  In 

Phrasing  Here 


70    Coin  Card  Enclosed 


Use  the  enclosed  coin  card — I  have  selected  one 
into  which  the  amount  due  will  just  fit. 

71  Blank  Check  Enclosed 

Simply  sign  the  enclosed  check  and  mail  it  to 
us— I  have  already  filled  it  out  for  the  right 
sum. 

72  Pin  Amount  to  This  Letter 

Simply  pin  this  (amount  in  bills)  to  this 
letter  and  return  to  us  in  the  enclosed 
envelop.  You  don't  need  to  write  a  letter. 

73  Call  and  Pay 

Kindly  arrange  to  call  and  make  this  payment 
promptly. 

74  Expect  to  Hear  at  Once 

I  expect  to  hear  from  you  at  once. 

75  Let  Us  Hear  At  Once 

Let  us  hear  from  you  at  once. 

76  Reply  by  (Date) 

We  must  have  your  definite  reply  by  (date). 

77  Your  Immediate  Attention 

Kindly  give  this  matter  your  immediate 
attention. 

78-79    For  additional  paragraphs 


165 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Nflfe  Changes  in  DEBTOR  GIVES  NO   REASON 

Phrasing  Here 

300  Notice  of  Payment  Due 

Enclosed  is  a  memorandum  of  your  (the)  bill. 
Payment,  as  you  will  notice,  was  due  on 
(date) . 

301  If  You  Can't  Pay,  Let  Us  Know 

If  payment  is  impossible  now,  the  only  fair 
thing  is  for  you  to  write  us  or  call  at  our 
office  at  once  and  take  up  this  matter  with  us. 

302  Courtesy  of  a  Reply  Due  Us 

At  least  the  courtesy  of  a  reply  is  due  us. 
Even  if  you  cannot  pay  your  bill  Just  now,  you 
should  frankly  let  us  know  the  reasons  why. 
When  we  know  just  where  you  stand,  some 
settlement  satisfactorv  to  us  both  can  be 
made. 

303  No  Reply — Are  You  Evading  Payment? 

We  don't  want  to  think  you  are  trying  to  evade 
payment.  However,  that  is  the  conclusion  we 
shall  have  to  come  to,  if  you  continue  to 
leave  our  letters  lying  on  your  desk  without 
a  reply. 

304-309    For  additional  paragraphs 


166 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


DEBTOR  GIVES  REASON  pT^^'h^,^" 

310  Glad  to  Help  Out 

In  a  situation  like  this  we  are  always  glad 
and  willing  to  go  as  far  as  we  can  to  help  out 
our  customers. 

31 1  No  Money— Extension  Granted 

In  order  to  help  you  out  as  much  as  possible 
we  are  extending  the  date  your  bill  is  due 
to  (date)  when  your  temporary  difficulty 
should  be  over. 

31 2  No  Money — Accept  Notes 

Since  you  are  unable  to  pay  the  full  amount  of 
the  bill  now,  we  will  gladly  accommodate  you 
by  letting  you  make  the  settlement  with  your 
personal  note  or  notes,  bearing  interest 
at  6%.  You  can  arrange  to  give  us  one  note 
for  the  whole  amount,  payable  in  60  days;  or 
two  notes  of  equal  amount,  payable  respect- 
ively in  30  days  and  60  days;  or  three  notes, 
payable  respectively  in  30,  60,  and  90  days. 
Choose  the  plan  which  suits  you  best.   This 
arrangement  will  help  you  over  the  present 
difficulty. 

313  No  Money— Will  Take  Back  Goods 

We  cannot  grant  extension  on  the  time  of  regu- 
lar bills.  Don't  you  see  that  this  would  be 
unfair  to  other  customers  and  the  same  as  an 
extra  discount  to  you?  We  shall,  however,  be 
glad  to  have  you  return  the  goods  to  us,  and 
we  will  cancel  the  bill  against  you. 

314  No  Money— Require  Payment  Now 

Our  original  bill  allowed  you  plenty  of  time 
for  payment.  The  difficulties  which  you  are 
in  could  have  been  foreseen  and  provided  for 
perfectly  well.   We,  therefore,  insist  upon 
the  terms  of  your  agreement. 


167 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in      3-|5    Has  Part  Money— Extension  Granted  on  Rest 

Phrasing  Here 

We  want  to  help  you  out  as  much  as  possible. 
Send  us  (amount)  now.  For  the  remainder, 
(amount),  we  have  extended  the  date  to  (date), 
when  your  temporary  difficulty  should  be  over. 

316    Has  Part  Money— Return  Goods  to  Cover  Balance 

We  cannot  grant  extensions  on  the  time  of 
regular  bills.  This  would  be  unfair  to  other 
customers  and  would  be  the  same  as  giving 
an  extra  discount  to  you.   In  order  to  ac- 
commodate you,  however,  we  will  accept  the 
(amount)  which  you  can  pay  now.  You  may  ship 
back  goods  to  cover  the  remainder  (amount). 
We  will  then  cancel  the  entire  amount  held 
against  you  on  our  books. 

317-319    For  additional  paragraphs 


168 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


ARGUMENTS    FOR    PAYING    NOW  Note  changes  l. 

Phrasing  Here 

320  Prompt  Payments  Mean  Cheaper  Goods 

Prompt  payment  of  bills  by  our  customers  makes 
it  possible  for  us  to  sell  goods  more  cheaply. 
When  our  money  comes  in  regularly  on  the  date 
due,  we  don't  have  to  make  an  allowance  for 
extra  interest  charges  and  add  a  percentage 
to  all  selling  prices  to  cover  the  amount. 
You  benefit  by  the  low  prices. 

321  Clearing  Up  Ledger  Accounts 

We  are  anxious  to  get  our  ledger  accounts  for 

the  month  of  ( )  closed  just  as  quickly  as 

possible.  Please  help  us  out  by  paying  today 
the  (amount)  which  you  owe  us  on  account. 

322  One  Bill  Small— Many  Large 

Remember  that  we  have  hundreds  of  small  ac- 
counts like  this.  You  will  hardly  miss  the 
(amount)  which  you  pay  us  today;  but  if  you 
should  delay,  and  a  few  others,  too,  it  would 
soon  mount  up  to  a  big  sum  for  us. 

323  Instalments— Easily  Paid  When  Due 

It  is  much  easier  to  pay  each  instalment  on 
the  day  it  is  due  than  to  let  it  drag  along 
until  nearly  time  for  the  next  one.  We  know 
how  it  is,  and  that  is  why  we  urge  you  to  pay 
today  the  (amount)  due  on  your  instalment  for 
(date) , 

324  You  Are  Not  Being  Fair 

You  want  to  be  perfectly  fair.  But  if  you 
prolong  the  delay  in  sending  the  amount  of 
your  bill,  (amount),  now  (length  of  time) 
overdue,  you  will  not  be  treating  us  fairly. 

325  Keep  Your  Credit  Good 

You  want  to  keep  your  credit  perfectly  clear. 
The  only  sure  way  to  do  this,  as  you  well 
know,  is  to  pay  your  bills  promptly  as  they 


169 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  fall  duG .      Any  delay  is  liable  to  cause  a  bad 

Phrasing  Here  impression,   which  you  Will   find  it  very  diffi- 

cult to  get  rid  of  later  on. 

326-329    For  additional  paragraphs 


170 


ACCOUNT-COLLECTING  PARAGRAPHS 


IN  CASE  OF  NON-PAYMENT  KJLSTre '" 

330  Harsh  Methods  a  Last  Resort 

We  have  no  desire  to  use  force  in  collecting 
this  account  unless  it  becomes  necessary  as  a 
last  resort. 

331  Definite  Action  on  (Date) 

Unless  your  remittance  is  in  our  hands  by 
(date),  we  shall  be  obliged  to  take  definite 
steps  for  the  legal  collection  of  your  over- 
due account. 

332  You  Will  Lose  Credit  Privilege 

We  extend  credit  to  our  customers  as  a  special 
convenience.   If  you  abuse  this  privilege  by 
not  paying  your  bills  promptly  when  they  fall 
due,  we  shall  be  obliged  to  deny  you  the  use 
of  the  privilege  of  charging  your  purchases 
in  the  future. 

333  We  Will  Take  Back  Goods 

You  will  remember  that  we  retain  control  of 
goods,  by  the  terms  of  our  contract,  until  the 
final  instalment  is  paid.  Think  of  the  incon- 
venience it  would  cause  you  now,  if  v/e  were 
compelled  to  take  them  away.  Unless,  however, 
your  instalments  are  paid  up  to  date,  by 
(date),  this  is  the  step  we  shall  be  obliged 
to  take. 

334  We  Will  Ask  Payment  of  Your  Guarantor 

In  case  you  do  not  remit  by  (date),  we  shall 
call  on  (name),  who  has  guaranteed  your 
account,  for  payment. 

335  We  Will  Place  in  Hands  of  Lawyer 

If  your  remittance  fails  to  reach  us  by  (date) 
we  shall  be  obliged  to  turn  your  account  over 
to  our  lawyer,  who  will  immediately  see  that 
the  necessary  steps  are  taken  to  secure  its 
payment  in  full. 

171 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


172 


CHAPTER  IX 


FORM  LETTERS  THAT  SPEED  UP  COLLECTIONS 


A  St.  Paul  collection  manager  called  in  an  expert  to 
analyze  his  letter  series  and  revise  it  with  an  eye  to 
reducing  an  unduly  high  percentage  of  bad  debts.  On 
his  first  hasty  reading,  the  expert  red-penciled  this  para- 
graph in  the  second  letter: 

'^If  you  are  under  the  impression  that  we  are  going 
to  permit  your  account  to  drag  along  for  six  months  or 
a  year  before  reaching  a  final  settlement,  you  are  very 
much  mistaken." 

The  average  sale  in  this  concern  amounted  to  about 
$4.  The  company  had  little  chance  of  recovering  from 
customers  who  persistently  refused  to  pay,  for  the 
amoimts  concerned  were  in  the  majority  of  cases  not 
large  enough  to  go  to  law  about. 

''In  the  paragraph  I  have  marked  there,"  said  the 
expert,  "you  are  bluffing,  and  nine  out  of  ten  of  the 
debtors  on  your  books  will  realize  the  fact  just  as  quickly 
as  I  do.  It  is  a  mean  paragraph.  Not  only  will  it  fail 
to  bring  in  the  money  from  bad-pays,  but  it  will  also 
antagonize  those  of  your  customers  who  fully  intend  to 
pay,  but  are  habitually  slow." 

The  complete  series  used  by  this  concern  consisted 
of  seven  letters  varying  Httle,  from  first  to  last,  in  the 
degree  of  emphasis  with  which  inamediate  payment  was 
demanded.  As  revised  by  the  specialist,  the  series  had 
five  letters,  grading  up  gradually  from  a  friendly  note 
at  first,  which  merely  called  the  debtor's  attention  to  the 
amount  due,  to  a  strong  appeal  to  his  sense  of  justice 
and  fair  play,  followed  by  a  final  ultimatum. 

The  series  prepared  by  this  expert  was  compared 
with  various  result-getting  letters  used,  among  others, 
by  a  haberdashery,  a  manufacturing  business,  a  wholesale 
house,  a  department  store,  and  a  medium-sized  mail- 
order house.    Corrected  and  strengthened  by  the  com- 


What  to  watch 
in  writing 
paragraphs 


This  set  of 
letters  proved 
effective 


173 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Using  sales 
paragraphs  in 
collection 
letters 


Putting 
"punch"  into 
form  letters 


How  to  keep  a 
series  flexible 


parison  wherever  necessary,  the  series  accompanying 
this  chapter  represents  the  best  experience  of  a  variety 
of  successful  collection  managers. 

The  first  letter  in  this  series  (Definitely  reminded  the 
debtor  of  his  obligation,  but  did  it  in  so  tactful  a  way 
as  to  cause  no  irritation.  The  final  sales  paragraph  in 
the  letter  showed  the  friendly  attitude  of  the  concern, 
and  at  the  same  time  indicated  that  the  debtor's  trade 
was  appreciated  and  further  desired. 

Shghtly  firmer,  the  second  letter  still  preserved  the 
attitude  that  the  firm  was  confident  that  the  debtor 
intended  to  pay  without  being  forced,  but  had  merely 
neglected  to  do  so.  To  shorten  the  series  and  bring  the 
collection  rapidly  to  a  crisis,  this  letter  sometimes  was 
used  first.    Nothing  in  it  indicates  that  it  is  a  follow-up. 

The  third  letter  comes  up  sharply.  The  writer  here 
expressed  surprise  at  the  debtor's  failure  to  pay  promptly, 
and  appealed  to  his  sense  of  fair  play. 

Such  letters,  fair,  square,  and  straightforward,  usually 
brought  the  honest  debtor's  check  or  a  letter  of  explana- 
tion. When  they  failed  to  draw  either,  the  writer 
brought  the  matter  definitely  to  a  crisis  in  the  fourth 
letter  of  the  series.  The  delinquent  was  given  his  choice 
of  either  paying  up  or  of  standing  suit.  A  definite  date 
was  set  for  his  reply. 

The  fifth  letter  sometimes  took  the  place  of  the  fourth 
in  the  follow-up;  again  it  followed  as  the  final  demand 
for  payment.  It  is  a  definite  ultimatum  and  makes  its 
point  without  any  attempt  at  argument. 

This  kind  of  flexibility  which  permits  you  to  omit 
one  or  two  letters  from  the  series  if  necessary,  is  an 
important  factor  in  the  collection  plan.  The  element  of 
risk  in  a  form  letter  series  is  that  it  may  be  allowed  to 
harden  into  a  system  followed  in  all  instances  and 
without  variation.  All  the  weapons  of  collection — 
personal  call,  wire,  individual  letter,  form  paragraph  and 
form  letter — have  their  special  fields  of  use.  Even  the 
times  of  follow-up  need  to  be  kept  as  flexible  and  personal 
as  possible.  Close  collection  depends  on  reaching  each 
debtor  With  the  proper  approach.  With  the  routine 
made  standard,  it  is  possible  to  classify  your  debtors, 
and  in  special  instances  to  drop  out  a  form  letter  or  focus 
on  the  delinquent  with  a  more  personal  message.  The 
present  series  was  planned  with  this  point  in  mind.    In 


174 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


it  the  third  letter  can  follow  the  first,  if  necessary,  and  the 
fifth  the  third,  or  a  beginning  can  be  made  with  the 
second.  The  series  was  made  long  enough  to  cover 
tactfully  a  delicate  case ;  but  the  letters  were  arranged  in 
such  a  way  that  the  manager  could  handle  the  slow-pays 
sharply  and  decisively. 

Sometimes  a  single  unusual  letter  will  catch  the 
favorable  attention  of  debtors  and  bring  difficult  accounts 
into  hne.  Successful  collection  letters  from  varied  lines 
show  the  collection  manager  definitely  what  phrases  and 
appeals  bring  in  the  money  due.  Such  are  the  specimens 
numbered  I — VIII. 

Often  a  successful  letter  is  a  growth  or  an  inspiration 
and  has  an  interesting  story  behind  it.  A  southern 
lumber  company  facing  a  business  reorganization  found 
on  its  books  a  large  number  of  small  past-due  accounts. 
The  debtors  were  on  the  average  reliable,  but  the  company 
had  never  insisted  on  a  prompt  collection  policy. 

In  an  effort  to  clear  up  the  numerous  small  debts 
which  had  accumulated,  the  collection  manager  studied 
successful  collection  letters  and  policies,  and  finally 
worked  out  a  letter  (VIII — 8)  which  he  sent  to  all  dealers 
owing  $10  or  less,  who  had  failed  to  respond  to  regular 
statements.  This  letter  evidently  attracted  the  attention 
of  debtors,  for  it  brought  immediate  and  most  gratifying 
retm-ns  from  a  large  percentage  of  them.  Clothed  in 
novel  form  to  distinguish  it  from  the  mass  of  the  day's  mail, 
a  fair  appeal  of  this  type  is  likely  to  prove  effective  in 
bringing  the  money  even  from  difficult  debtors.  Some 
customers  have  to  be  startled  out  of  their  lethargy; 
others  you  must  hurry  into  paying  by  working  on  their 
fear  of  what  steps  you  may  take.  The  actual  letters 
following  the  standard  forms  show  many  methods  of 
attacking  accounts,  and  the  analysis  by  paragraphs 
enables  the  collection  manager  to  pick  out  the  best 
paragraphs  touching  any  point.  The  art  of  collecting  is 
to  study  out  your  list  of  delinquents  month  by  month, 
and  fit  your  letter  series  to  the  needs  of  the  individual. 


How  to  use  the 
unusual  letter 


How  this 
letter  grew 


Fitting  your 
letters  to  your 
needs 


175 


INDEX  TO  COLLECTION  LETTERS 


Constant  use  of  this     FIVE  STANDARD  LETTERS— A  SERIES  READY  FOR  USE 


index  will  help  you 

to  memorize  the 

PAGE 

paragraph  numbers 

1300 

First  letter 

178 

1301 

Second  letter 

178 

1302 

Third  letter 

179 

1303 

Fourth  letter 

179 

1304 

Fifth  letter 

179 

1305- 

1309      For  additional  collection  letters 

180 

TESTED  COLLECTION  LETTERS  IN  SERIES 

Series 

I  Wholesaler  to  Dealer 

II  Retailer  to  Customer 

III  Professional  Collector  to  Debtor 

IV  Retailer  to  Consumer 
V  Retailer  to  Consumer 

VI      Manufacturer  to  Dealer   . 
VII      Wholesaler  to  Dealer 


183 
183 
185 

186 

187 
188 
188 


SINGLE  LETTERS  OF  PROVED  PULLING  POWER 

VIII  (1)  Subscription  House  to  Customer 

(2)  Mail-Order  Concern  to  Customer 

(3)  Retailer  to  Customer     . 

(4)  Retailer  to  Customer     . 

(5)  Manufacturer  to  Customer 

(6)  Manufacturer  to  Dealer 

(7)  Retailer  to  Customer     . 

(8)  Supply  Company  to  Customer 


189 
190 
191 
192 

192 
192 
193 
194 


ANALYSIS  BY  PARAGRAPHS 

COMPELLING  ATTENTION 

1301-a;  1302-a;  1303-a;  1304-c;  I-l;  I-3-b;  Il-l-a;  II-2-a; 
Ill-l-a;  IV-2-a;  IV-3-a;  V-l-a;  VII-2-a;  VIII-2-a,  b;  VIII-3-b; 
VIII-4-a;  VIII-5-a;  VIII-7-a;  VIII-8. 

EXTRACTING  CREDIT  INFORMATION 

1300-a;  1302-b;  1-2;  Il-l-a,  b;  IV-l-a;  VI-2;  VIII-3-a; 
VIII-6-a. 


176 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


APPEALING  TO  DEBTOR'S  PRIDE  Constant  use  of  this 

index  will  help  you 
1302-c;  1303-b;  1304-b,  II-l-c;  II-2-b;  II-3;  III-2-b,  c,  d;     to  memorize  the 
IV-2-b;  V-l-b;  VIII-2-c;  VIII-3-a,  c;  VIII-7-b,  c.  paragraph  numbers 

CAUTIONING  AGAINST  DELAYED  PAYMENT 

1303-c,d;  1304-a,d;  I-3-a;  I-4-a;  II-3;III-l-b;III-2-a,  VI-1; 
VI-3;  VIII-6-b;  VIII-7-b. 

SUGGESTING  PAYMENT  PLANS 

1300-b;  1301-c;  II-2-d;  III-2-e;  V-l-b;  V-2;  Vlll-l-a,  b, 
c,d;  VIII-2-d;  VIII-3-d;  VIII-4-b;  VIII-5-b. 

DEMONSTRATING  EXPEDIENCY  OF  EARLY  PAYMENT 

1303-b,  c;  I-4-a;  Il-l-b;  II-3;  V-2;  VII-l-c;  VII-2-b; 
VIII-3-b;  VIII-7-b. 

TO  PREVENT  LOSS  OF  DEBTOR'S  TRADE 

1300-c;  Il-l-b,  d;  IV-l-b;  V-l-c;  VIII-l-c;  VIII-3-c,  d; 
VIII-8. 

EMPHASIZING  NECESSITY  FOR  ACTION 

1301-b;  1302-d;  1303-b,  c,  d,  e;  1304-a,  d;  I-4-a,  b;  Ill-l-a,  c; 
III-2-e;  IV-l-a,  b,;  IV-2-b;  IV-3-a,  b;  V-2;  VI-2;  VI-3; 
Vll-l-b;  VII-2-C,  d;  VIII-3-c;  VIII-6-a,  c;  VIII-7-b,  c,  d; 
VIII-8. 


177 


!he  ^iefTr?!?  FIVE  STANDARD  COLLECTION  LETTERS 

spondcnt  ^ould 
note    next   to 

each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 

to  make  1300    First  Letter.    Did  You  Receive  Our  Statement? 


A  FORM  SERIES  READY  FOR  USE 


a  Will  you  kindly  let  me  know  whether  you  re- 
ceived our  itemized  statement  of  your  ac- 
count which  we  mailed  you  on  the  (date)?  If 
it  failed  to  reach  you,  the  amount  of  the 
bill,  due  on  the  (date),  was  (amount). 

b  In  paying,  you  may  simply  pin  your  check  to 
this  letter  and  mail  it  back  to  me  in  the 
enclosed  envelop.   You  need  not  bother  to 
write  a  letter. 

c  Our  new  fall  stocks  are  now  in,  and  it  is 
well  worth  a  special  trip  to  see  them.  Some 
are  exactly  what  you  will  be  needing  soon. 
And  you,  I  know,  are  one  who  appreciates  the 
artistic  possibilities  of  early  shopping, 
while  complete  stocks  offer  a  greater  variety 
of  selection. 

1301     Second  Letter.    Your  Check  Has  Not  Arrived 

a  The  check  you  were  to  send  me  for  (amount) 
due  on  your  bill  of  the  (date)  has  not 
arrived.  No  doubt  you  overlooked  the  bill, 
or  have  it  pigeonholed  for  early  settlement. 

b  The  amount  is  not  large.  But  you  know  we 
carry  hundreds  of  accounts  just  about  this 
size.   Prompt  settlements  only  are  business- 
like. 

c  I  am  enclosing  an  addressed  envelop  which  you 
may  use. 

d  Don't  bother  to  write  a  letter.  Just  pin 
your  check  to  this  note  and  drop  it  in  the 
letter  box. 


178 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


1302  Third  Letter.    Account  Still  Hanging  Over  Note  Changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

a  Your  account  of  (amount),  due  us  on  the 
(date),  is  still  hanging  over. 

b  Although  I  have  written  as  well  as  sent  the 
statement,  you  have  not  remitted  the  money  or 
given  me  any  reason  for  not  doing  so. 

c  You  would  not  intentionally  be  otherwise  than 
absolutely  fair  in  your  business  relations,  I 
am  quite  sure.  Yet  when  you  fail  to  pay  your 
account  as  it  falls  due,  you  are  not  being 
fair  either  to  yourself  or  to  us. 

d  I  expect  to  hear  from  you  at  once. 

1 303  Fourth  Letter.    Warning  of  Legal  Action 

a  I  have  sent  you  frequent  statements  and 
letters  about  the  (amount)  on  your  account, 
which  is  now  past  due  (number  of  days  or 
weeks) . 

b  You  have  not  paid  the  account,  or  even  an- 
swered my  letters.   Your  credit — your  repu- 
tation for  honesty  and  fairness  in  your  busi- 
ness dealings — is  at  stake.   Continued 
unexplained  delay  means  a  serious  disregard 
for  your  own  good. 

c  Harsh  collection  methods  are  a  last  resort 
with  us.   Our  president  says,  "Give  every 
customer  the  benefit  of  the  doubt  for  a 
definite  and  reasonable  period  before  taking 
action."  Your  account  has  been  allowed  to 
run  to  the  time  limit,  however,  and  you  have 
failed  to  respond. 

d  I  am  still  going  to  give  you  a  sufficient 
number  of  days  to  settle  the  account  before  I 
put  it  in  the  hands  of  a  lawyer. 

e  Let  me  have  your  definite  reply  without  fail 
by  (date) . 

1304  Fifth  Letter.    Last  Chance  to  Settle 

a  This  firm  cannot  allow  any  further  delay  in 
the  payment  of  your  account  of  (amount) . 


179 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Phrasin'^'Here '"     ^   ^^^  hawe   been  given  every  extension,  but  have 
failed  to  respond. 

c  This  bill  is  now  overdue  (number  of  days, 
weeks  or  months) . 

d  Your  account  will  now  go  to  our  lawyer,  who 
will  promptly  take  the  legal  steps  to  secure 
collection  unless  I  hear  from  you  by  the 
(date) . 

1 305-1 309    For  additional  collection  form  letters 


180 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


181 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Use  this  page  for  additional  paragraphs 


182 


TESTED  COLLECTION  LETTERS  IN  SERIES 

SERIES  I— WHOLESALER  TO  DEALER 

First  Letter.    Account  Overdue 

Enclosed  find  for  your  attention  a  memorandum 
of  your  overdue  account,  an  early  settlement  of 
which  will  be  greatly  appreciated. 

Second  Letter.    Why  the  Delay? 

a  We  are  still  waiting  returns  on  your  past-due 
indebtedness. 

b  Why  the  delay  in  payment? 

Third  Letter.    Management  Orders  Collection 

a  The  management  has  intimated  that  sufficient 
time  has  been  allowed  for  the  payment  of  your 
account  and  has  directed  collection  forthwith. 

b  Please  favor  us  with  your  attention 

Fourth  Letter.    Final  Chance  to  Avoid  Trouble 

a  We  are  making  our  last  direct  demand  for 

settlement  of  your  overdue  account,  previous  to 
closing  our  records  and  referring  the  collec- 
tion elsewhere. 

b  It  is  to  be  hoped  you  will  understand  the 
urgency  in  the  matter  and  govern  yourself 
accordingly. 

SERIES  11— RETAILER  TO  CUSTOMER 

First  Letter.    Aims  to  Remove  Any  Complaint 

'  a  This  department  has  just  received  for  collec- 
tion a  delinquent  account  against  you,  covering 
a  purchase  you  made  from  us  some  time  ago.  We 
believe  you  have  failed  to  make  payment  for  one 


In  this  margin 
the  chief  corre- 
spondent should 
note  next  to 
each  paragraph 
any  additions,  or 
changes  in  phras- 
ing he  may  care 
to  make 


183 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Phl!siS*"'HM» '"     °^  ^^^   reasons.  Either  you  have  some  complaint 
which  you  think  has  not  been  given  prompt  at- 
tention, or  else  you  have  merely  overlooked  the 
debt  on  account  of  absence  from  home  or  pres- 
sure of  other  duties. 

b  If  you  have  made  a  complaint,  will  you  state 
your  grievance  to  us  once  more?  Our  accounting 
department  may  have  overlooked  it  in  the  large 
volume  of  business  which  is  done  there,  but  WE 
will  NOT  overlook  it,  for  it  is  our  business  to 
settle  all  just  complaints  to  the  entire  satis- 
faction of  our  customers.  Now  is  the  time  to 
clean  up  all  misunderstandings. 

c  If  the  account  has  merely  escaped  your  atten- 
tion, we  ask  you  to  accord  us  the  same  fair 
treatment  we  offer  by  sending  a  remittance  to 
Close  the  account. 

d  We  assure  you  of  our  earnest  wish  to  maintain 
the  pleasant  relations  that  have  existed 
between  us. 

Second  Letter.    Let  Us  Have  an  Explanation  or  Schedule 

a  We  wish  to  call  attention  again  to  your  account. 
You  are  allowing  your  payments  to  run  behind. 

b  When  we  entered  into  a  contract  with  you  we 
expected  the  strictest  fulfilment  on  your  part. 
The  margin  of  profit  which  we  have  allowed 
ourselves  demands  that  the  obligation  be  dis- 
charged as  agreed  and  with  the  least  possible 
friction. 

c  We  believe  this  account  has  escaped  your  atten- 
tion and  that  a  reminder  will  result  in  settle- 
ment. If  any  cause  for  dissatisfaction  with 
the  contract  exists,  please  inform  us  at  once. 
It  is  better  to  clear  up  misunderstandings  at 
the  outset  than  to  allow  them  to  drag,  making 
your  account  troublesome  to  us  and  annoying  to 
you. 

d  If  it  is  not  convenient  for  you  to  make  a  pay- 
ment at  present,  then  let  us  have  a  definite 
remittance  schedule  from  you. 


184 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


Third  Letter.    When  Debtor  Places  Another  Order  Note  Changes  in 

Phrasing  Here 

a  When  you  ordered  the  merchandise  you  received 
from  us,  you  gave  your  occupation  as  factory 
superintendent.   This  position  should  carry 
considerable  personal  responsibility.  Yet,  as 
we  wrote  you  in  our  recent  letter,  the  account 
you  now  have  with  our  company  has  not  been 
settled  according  to  the  contract. 

b  If  you  will  explain  to  our  satisfaction  your 
continued  delay  in  remitting  for  your  first 
order,  we  shall  be  glad  to  fill  your  present 
order.   We  are  writing  to  you  frankly.   In  your 
position  you  can  appreciate  the  fact  that  v/e 
are  giving  you  another  opportunity  to  make 
payment  rather  than  asking  an  attorney  to  look 
you  up. 

SERIES  III— PROFESSIONAL  COLLECTOR  TO  DEBTOR 

First  Letter.    Remit  or  Explain 

a  We  have  today  received  a  claim  against  you  for 
immediate  collection.  It  was  given  to  us  by 
John  Webster  of  New  York.  The  amount  is  $20. 
As  we  wish  to  afford  you  an  opportunity  of  an 
amicable  settlement,  we  ask  you  to  take  up  with 
us  by  return  mail  your  reason  for  neglecting 
this  obligation.  We  hope  it  is  simply  an  over- 
sight on  your  part  and  that  prompt  attention 
will  save  you  the  embarrassment  of  having  the 
account  taken  into  court. 

b  It  is  expected  that  this  notice  will  bring  an 
immediate  response  in  the  form  of  a  remittance 
or  some  definite  statement  as  to  when  a  settle- 
ment will  be  made. 

c  We  expect  to  hear  from  you  within  the  next  FIVE 
days. 

Second  Letter.    Touches  Self-Interest,  Also  Fair  Play 

a  We  can  hardly  believe  that  you  will  allow  us  to 
use  extreme  measures  in  order  to  collect  the 
claim  of  John  Webster  of  New  York,  amounting  to 
$20. 


18S 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


phLnS^K'"  ^   I^  ^^^   ^®^"^  ^^  ^^  honest  one,  we  believe  you 

will  make  every  effort  to  pay  it.  If  it  is  not 

a  just  claim,  you  do  not  want  to  pay  it,  and 
we  would  not  expect  you  to. 

c  Honesty  is  the  best  policy.  Can  you  afford  to 
risk  your  good  reputation  for  the  sake  of  such 
a  small  sum? 

d  We  desire  to  effect  a  settlement  of  this  ac- 
count in  an  easy  and  amicable  way.  Giving 
publicity  to  it  would  not  help  us  any,  but  it 
certainly  would  be  a  discredit  to  you  among 
your  friends  and  neighbors. 

e  Let  us  be  fair  with  each  other.  Send  us  your 
check  or  a  money  order  TODAY.   If  you  cannot 
send  it  today,  be  very  sure  to  send  us  imme- 
diate word  as  to  just  what  day  we  may  look 
for  it. 

SERIES  IV— RETAILER  TO  CONSUMER 

First  Letter.    Account  90  Days  Old 

a  Your  account  with  us  now  amounts  to  $78.34. 
Because  nothing  has  been  paid  on  it  for  three 
months,  we  ask  that  you  either  let  us  know  what 
circumstances  are  causing  the  delay  or  else 
make  regular  payments  from  now  on. 

b  This  is  necessary  because  on  opening  the  ac- 
count we  agreed  upon  monthly  payments,  as  is 
our  custom,  and  all  our  finances  are  arranged 
accordingly. 

Second  Letter.    Account  120  Days  Old 

a  On  July  1,  we  wrote  you  about  your  account  with 
us,  showing  that  you  had  a  balance  due  us  of 
$78.34,  upon  which  nothing  had  been  paid  for 
four  months. 

b  As  we  arrange  for  monthly  payments  on  our 
charge  accounts,  as  we  agreed  with  you,  our 
finances  are  shaped  to  depend  on  payments  every 
30  days.  Therefore  we  ask  a  settlement  of 
this  account. 


186 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


Third  Letter.    Account  130  Days  Old  Note  changes  in 

"hrasing  Here 

a  We  wrote  you  on  July  1  and  August  1  about  your 
account  with  us,  which  you  agreed  to  pay 
monthly,  but  which  is  now  more  than  four 
months  overdue.   We  have  not  heard  from  you. 

b  Therefore  the  account  must  be  settled  within 
the  next  few  days,  or  we  will  have  our  col- 
lector take  it  up. 


SERIES  V— RETAILER  TO  CONSUMER 

First  Letter.    Clearing  Away  the  Debtor's  Objections 

a  We  desire  at  this  time  to  call  your  attention 
to  the  statement  of  your  account  mailed  you 
August  1,  amounting  to  $63.92.  We  ask  you  to 
see  that  a  remittance  covering  this  amount 
reaches  us  without  further  delay. 

b  You  will  remember  that  when  you  reopened  your 
account  in  April  it  was  on  the  understanding 
that  it  would  be  taken  care  of  on  a  strictly 
30-day  basis,  as  all  our  accounts  are  handled 
Your  April  and  May  accounts  were  paid  on  June 
19,  but  the  above  statement  covers  purchases, 
made  since  June  1. 

c  If  we  could  afford  to  carry  our  accounts  for 
four  or  five  months,  we  would  be  glad  to  do  so 
and  particularly  for  you,  Mrs.  Harris,  as  we 
appreciate  your  patronage  very  much,  but  owing 
to  the  large  volume  of  credit  business  we 
carry,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  handle  our 
business  in  this  manner  and  we  must  therefore 
adhere  strictly  to  the  30-day  basis. 

d  We  feel  that  with  you  it  is  only  a  matter  of 
oversight.  Will  you  not  give  this  account  your 
prompt  attention  and  see  that  your  future 
accounts  are  taken  care  of  in  the  manner  which 
we  suggest? 

Second  Letter.    Payment  Urgent  and  Easy 

As  soon  as  you  finish  reading  this  letter, 
please  take  your  pen  and  make  out  a  check  for 


187 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


KsinSTre'"     $63.92  payable  to  the  Wilton-Redman  Company, 
and  mail  it  in  the  enclosed  envelop.  We  are 
sending  this  letter  to  you  by  special  delivery, 
so  as  to  insure  it  receiving  prompt  attention. 
We  expect  your  answer  to  reach  our  office  be- 
fore we  close  Monday  afternoon,  August  15, 
otherwise  we  will  suspend  credit  on  your 
account,  which  we  dislike  to  do. 

SERIES  VI— MANUFACTURER  TO  DEALER 

First  Letter.    Backing  a  Draft  with  a  Simultaneous  Request  for  Payment 

Will  you  kindly  honor  our  draft  of  May  12,  for 
$94,  which  is  at  the  Second  National  Bank,  or 
remit  the  amount  to  us  direct  without  further 
delay? 

Second  Letter.    Explanations  Are  in  Order 

Let  me  know  by  return  mail  the  cause  of  the 
delay  in  receiving  returns  from  our  draft  on 
you,  under  date  of  May  12. 

Third  Letter.    Account  Watched  and  Forced  Collection  Pending 

Again  your  account  has  come  under  inspection 
through  our  follow-up  system.   On  May  31  we 
wrote  you  a  second  letter  of  inquiry  regarding 
the  draft  of  May  12,  but  we  have  heard  nothing 
from  you.   We  cannot  grant  any  further  time  on 
your  long-past-due  account.  A  remittance  sent 
to  us  by  return  mail  will  prevent  us  from  turn- 
ing to  our  legal  department  for  collection.  We 
dislike  to  do  this.   We  do  not  know  what  your 
intentions  are  with  reference  to  the  account, 
but  we  do  know  that  we  will  not  let  you  evade 
payment . 

SERIES  VII— WHOLESALER  TO  DEALER 

First  Letter.    Asks  Payment  before  Filling  of  New  Order 

a  We  have  today  received  your  order  through  our 
salesman,  Mr.  Peck,  for  which  accept  our 
thanks. 


188 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


b   We  find,   however,    that  you  are  owing  us  for  Note  changes  in 

'  "^  *=•  Phrasing  Here 

invoice  of  April  6,  $142,  and  April  29,  $95,  a 
total  of  $237.  Since  these  invoices  are  past 
due,  we  must  request  a  remittance  of  $237 
before  filling  your  order. 

c  If  you  will  send  us  this  amount,  we  shall  be 
glad  to  ship  your  order. 

Second  Letter.    Why  No  Answer?    Pay  at  Once 

a  You  have  not  answered  our  letter  of  May  15 
about  your  past-due  account  and  also  the  order 
you  gave  Mr.  Peck  on  May  13.  Why  not? 

b  If  you  will  put  yourself  in  our  position,  you 
will  see  that  it  is  only  fair  that  shipment  of 
your  order  should  wait  until  your  account  has 
been  paid  up  to  date. 

c  When  the  account  was  opened,  it  was  with  the 
understanding  that  bills  were  to  be  paid 
promptly.  Therefore,  we  expect  a  payment  of 
the  amount  now  due.  On  receipt  of  a  remittance 
of  $237,  the  goods  on  your  recent  order  will 
be  shipped  promptly. 

d  Please  give  this  account  your  immediate 
attention. 


SERIES  VIM— SINGLE  COLLECTION  LETTERS 

(1)    Subscription  House  to  Customer 

a  You  purchased  from  us  a  short  time  ago  a 

reference  library  on  the  $5  a  month  plan,  and 
you  have  paid  us  $20  on  account,  leaving  a 
balance  of  $140.  If  you  send  us  your  check  in 
full  at  once,  you  will  have  a  right  to  a  cash 
discount  of  $10,  so  that  the  check  will  be  for 
$130  only.   It  may  not  be  convenient  for  you 
to  remit  this  amount  in  one  sum,  but  if  you 
still  wish  to  save  the  discount  you  can  do  so 
by  dividing  the  amount  into  seven  equal  parts 
and  sending  us  seven  checks  of  $18.57  each, 
the  first  dated  at  once,  the  second  a  month 
later,  the  third  a  month  later  still,  and  so 


189 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in  ^^     uiitil  vou  have  a  total  of  sevGii  checks 

Phrasing  Here  ^     >  %j 

amounting  to  $130,  but  payable  during  seven 
consecutive  months.  This  will  enable  you  to 
buy  at  the  lowest  cash  price  and  yet  spread 
your  payments  over  a  large  part  of  a  year 
without  any  inconvenience. 

b  We  make  you  this  offer  because  we  have  at  the 
present  time  on  our  books  several  thousand 
accounts  similar  to  yours,  and  the  number  is 
increasing  several  hundred  a  day.  This  means 
unusually  heavy  clerical  work  in  our  accounting 
department.  It  is  impossible  for  us  to  handle 
many  more  of  these  accounts.  Accordingly,  to 
make  room  for  the  business  that  is  now  coming 
in,  we  are  sending  this  offer  to  a  limited 
number  of  our  present  customers. 

c  If  this  offer  does  not  interest  you,  do  not 
take  the  trouble  to  reply,  but  continue  to  make 
your  payments  as  heretofore.  If  it  does  inter- 
est you,  make  out  the  checks  to  our  order, 
dated  as  stated  above,  and  send  them  all  to  us 
at  once,  in  full  and  final  settlement  of  your 
account.  Remember,  the  checks  you  send  will 
not  reach  your  bank  to  be  drawn  against  your 
account  until  the  date  you  write  on  them,  so 
that  all  you  will  have  to  do  each  month  is  to 
see  that  your  balance  is  then  large  enough  for 
that  month's  check. 

d  If  in  any  month  you  should  find  it  impossible 
to  pay  one  of  the  checks  sent  us,  we  shall  be 
glad  to  arrange  for  any  reasonable  postpone- 
ment, provided  only  you  give  us  10  days' 
notice.   If  it  is  more  convenient  for  you  to 
date  your  checks  on  some  day  of  the  month 
other  than  that  on  which  you  receive  this,  you 
may  do  so. 

(2)    Mail-Order  Concern  to  Customer 

a  What  do  you  do  when  a  man  owes  you  a  small  sum 
of  money — %2   for  instance — and  doesn't 
pay  any  attention  to  repeated  letters  and 
bills? 


190 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


b  Do  you  charge  it  off  to  profit  and  loss,  or  do   Easing 3 '" 
you  spend  another  %2   sending  him  more  let- 
ters and  bills? 

c  The  reason  I  am  asking  you  is  that  you  sent  us 
an  order  and  forgot  all  about  paying  for  it. 

d  Yes,  I  know  you're  "good  for  it,"  but  I  would 
feel  more  sure  if  you  were  to  pin  a  $2  bill  to 
this  letter  and  send  it  back  by  return  mail. 

(3)    Retailer  to  Customer 

a  Some  time  ago  I  wrote  to  you  about  your  account 
and  thus  far  you  have  not  noticed  my  letter.   I 
also  wrote  to  you  on  March  25,  referring  to  my 
own  obligations  and  asking  you  for  assistance. 
This  letter  you  have  likewise  ignored. 

b  I  must  impress  upon  your  mind  that  your  account 
has  now  been  hanging  over  for  nearly  a  year, 
and  that  you  agreed  to  pay  by  the  week  until 
the  account  was  settled.  Now,  Mr.  Wilson,  it 
is  not  my  intention  to  make  threats  of  any 
sort,  but  you  must  look  at  this  in  a  business- 
like way  and  see  whether  I  am  in  the  right. 

c  In  the  first  place,  I  have  lost  your  trade. 
You  have  not  been  in  the  store  to  buy  as  much 
as  a  pair  of  hose  since  I  accommodated  you, 
consequently  my  accommodation  not  only  drove 
you  away  from  the  store,  but  also  left  me  "out" 
$15.70  in  an  unpaid  bill. 

d  Mr.  Wilson,  I  am  willing  to  help  you.   If  you 
will  call  next  Saturday  night,  and  make  a  pay- 
ment then  and  every  week  thereafter,  before  you 
realize  it  the  account  will  be  entirely  cleaned 
up.  Better  still,  come  in  and  let  us  talk 
this  over  and  see  what  arrangements  we  can 
make  for  settlement.   I  do  not  want  you  to  feel 
that  you  have  to  cross  the  street  whenever  you 
see  me  coming. 

e  I  want  your  business  and  I  will  do  anything 
fair  to  be  agreeable.  Just  now  our  lines  are 
complete  and  include  the  best  clothing,  fur- 


191 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


PhSsin'^^Here '"  nishings,    and  shoes  in  the  vicinity.      Let  me 

hear  from  you  by  a  personal  call.      I  know  you 
will  be  glad  to  look  over  our  stock. 

(4)  Retailer  to  Customer 

a  We  note  that  your  account  for  February- April, 
$146.80,  is  still  unpaid,  and  would  draw  your 
attention  to  our  terms: 

b  "Our  goods  are  sold  at  cash  prices,  and  payment 
is  required  early  in  the  following  month." 

c  We  ask,  therefore,  that  you  favor  us  with  pay- 
ment in  accordance  with  these  terms. 

(5)  Manufacturer  to  Customer 

a  Your  order  was  sent  to  us  some  months  before 
our  new  stock  was  received  from  the  factory. 
Because  we  were  unable  to  fill  it  promptly  we 
have  not  wished  to  ask  for  an  early  payment  of 
our  bill  of  March  5. 

b  Our  financial  year  closes,  however,  on  June  30, 
and  I  hope  that  all  accounts  may  be  settled 
before  then.  May  I  ask  you  to  help  out  by 
sending  a  check  for  the  amount  of  the  enclosed 
bill  at  your  early  convenience? 

(6)  Manufacturer  to  Dealer 

a  According  to  our  bookkeeper's  report  the  past- 
due  bills  in  your  account  amount  to  $296.40 
and,  as  the  invoices  of  May  1  are  still  unpaid, 
we  are  at  a  loss  to  understand  why  our  several 
urgent  letters  asking  for  a  settlement  have 
been  ignored.   If  you  realize  that  you  have  not 
yet  paid  for  goods  sold  to  you  on  60-day 
terms  more  than  four  months  ago,  we  think  you 
will  concede  our  treatment  of  your  account  has 
been  exceedingly  considerate  and  that  we  are 
entitled  to  be  paid  without  further  delay,  ex- 
pense, or  annoyance.  We  ask  you  to  send 
promptly  on  receipt  of  this  letter  a  remittance 
of  $296.40.  Why  not  recognize  at  once  the  fact 
that  this  account  must  be  paid?  What  can  you 
expect  to  gain  by  your  silence? 


193 


GETTING  IN  THE  MONEY 


b  If  you  do  not  answer,  we  shall  be  forced  to      ^^5!'^'" 
the  conclusion  that  more  effective  measures 
must  be  adopted  to  gain  this  long-overdue 
settlement  and,  accordingly,  on  June  9,  your 
remittance  not  having  been  received,  we  will 
draw  upon  you  through  a  bank  in  Boston.  We 
will  place  the  claim  in  the  hands  of  our  local 
attorney  for  prompt  action,  if  the  draft  is  not 
paid  on  presentation. 

c  We  are  reluctant  to  adopt  such  severe  measures 
or  even  to  mention  them,  but  we  cannot  grant  a 
further  extension.  After  the  accommodation  you 
have  had  from  us,  will  you  put  us  to  the  annoy- 
ance and  expense  of  collecting  from  you  in  this 
manner,  and  are  you  willing  to  stand  for  the 
annoyance  and  expense  a  suit  will  cost  you? 

(7)    Retailer  to  Customer 

a  You  will  recall  that  you  have  failed  to  settle 
for  your  note,  which  which  is  now  a  month  over- 
due. We  want  to  give  you  another  chance  to 
remit  your  payment  in  a  pleasant,  honest, 
and  businesslike  manner. 

b  To  be  perfectly  frank  with  you,  your  note  is 
for  value  received,  and  we  cannot  let  you  evade 
paying  it.  The  time  has  now  come  when  we  must 
have  an  understanding.   There  are  only  two  ways 
this  can  be  settled;  one  is  that  you  remit  at 
once,  and  the  other  is — well,  it  is  called 
"forced  collection."  You  know  what  that  means. 
It  means  that  we  will  hand  your  note  to  an 
attorney  with  instructions  to  sue  you,  if  nec- 
essary.  What  will  your  neighbors  think?  It 
certainly  will  not  help  your  credit  with  them. 

c  Now,  Mr.  Martin,  you  make  it  necessary  for  us 
to  write  you  in  this  way  by  your  failure  to  an- 
swer any  of  our  letters.   We  don't  like  to  do 
this  if  we  can  help  it. 

d  Your  note  with  interest  now  amounts  to  $94.80. 
Why  not  forward  this  amount  by  first  mail,  and 
avoid  further  annoyance  and  expense? 


193 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Note  Changes  in      (8)    Supply  Company  to  Customer 

Phrasing  Here 

"Many  hands  make  light  work." 

Think  of  one  man 

Having  to  pay 

$5,000  cash. 

Looks  hard — doesn't  it? 

Then  think  of 

500  men  paying  the  same  amount— 

$10  each — looks  easy. 

We  have  to  raise 

$5,000  this  week. 

Need  help — 

Won't  you  please 

Look  up  our  statement,  June  1, 

Amount  due  $8.72, 

And  "lend  a  helping  hand"? 

Thank  you. 


194 


CHAPTER  X 


GETTING  THE  MAIL  OUT  ON  TIME 


When  his  business  grew  out  of  the  purely  one-man 
stage,  a  successful  manufacturer  of  advertising  special- 
ties found  it  more  and  more  of  a  task  to  supervise  per- 
sonally all  his  correspondence.  Three  and  four  hours  of 
his  business  day,  he  discovered,  were  being  consumed  by 
reading  the  mail,  dictating  replies  and  often  doing  a  share 
of  the  mechanical  work  of  opening,  distributing  or  send- 
ing out  letters.  This  time,  it  is  quite  clear,  he  should 
have  devoted  to  creative  work. 

Analyzing  the  situation,  he  found  that,  without 
giving  up  that  insight  into  the  details  of  his  business 
which  daily,  intimate  contact  with  the  mail  afforded  him, 
he  could  shift  to  his  stenographer  most  of  the  responsi- 
bility for  the  replies  and  could  standardize  the  mechani- 
cal handUng  of  his  correspondence. 

After  the  change,  she  opened  the  mail  and  made  a 
preliminary  reading  of  it.  Some  of  the  letters  she  was 
able  to  answer  without  referring  to  anyone;  the  majority 
she  passed  on  to  the  executive  heads  of  the  different 
departments  for  information  or  reply.  In  the  final 
analysis,  only  a  very  few  letters  were  found  to  require 
the  personal  attention  of  the  executive. 

Moreover,  a  simple  report  was  marked  out,  which 
now  tells  him  every  day  the  number  of  each  kind  of  letter 
received  and  sent — orders,  complaints,  inquiries,  and 
miscellaneous.  Any  letter  of  interest  so  hsted  he  can 
call  in  for  reference.  Occasionally  he  devotes  part  of  a 
Monday  to  reading  all  the  letters,  outgoing  as  well  as 
incoming,  simply  to  keep  in  touch;  but  he  finds  that  a 
capable  secretary  is  able  to  take  care  of  the  routine  work 
day  in  and  day  out  quite  effectively.  The  care  is  shifted 
and  the  cost  lessened. 

This  manufacturer  challenged  and  solved  two  corre- 
spondence leaks — the  waste  of  his  own  time  in  reading 


How  to  shift 
the  burden  of 
dictation 


Keeping  in 
touch  with  the 
correspondence 


195 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Standardizing 

correspondence 

routine 


Machines  that 
save  time 


Don't  let 

enclosures 
he  lost 


mail  and  in  routine  dictation.  Not  5%  of  the  letters 
which  formerly  consumed  his  attention,  had  actually- 
brought  up  new  or  important  problems.  For  95  letters 
out  of  every  100 — and  the  fact,  if  not  the  exact  per- 
centage, may  be  taken  as  ahnost  universal — the  formula 
of  reply  had  long  been  established. 

Many  offices  have  reduced  the  various  steps  from 
opening  the  mail  to  sealing  and  stamping  rephes.  Such 
improved  methods  of  work  in  the  correspondence  depart- 
ment group  themselves  imder  three  headings:  (1)  im- 
provements in  handling  the  incoming  and  outgoing  mail 
mechanically;  (2)  plans  to  standardize  ideas  in  order  to 
simplify  the  actual  writing  of  the  letters;  (3)  standards  of 
personal  abihty  which  enable  the  office  manager  to  suit 
his  force  to  its  capacities  and  the  work  to  be  done. 

Cutting  the  cost  of  your  correspondence  is,  therefore, 
simply  applying  these  short  cuts — giving  over  to  an  ex- 
pertly constructed  routine  everything  in  the  field  of 
your  office  correspondence  except  the  actual  writing  of 
those  few  letters  which  require  decisions,  research,  and 
actions  that  are  new. 

For  the  actual  opening  of  the  envelops,  machines  of 
various  types  have  been  perfected  which  do  the  work 
more  speedily  and  with  less  damage  to  the  contents 
than  the  old-fashioned  paper  knife.  If  your  office  is 
small  an  inexpensive  hand  machine  will  suffice;  but  if 
the  number  of  letters  received  in  a  day  runs  from  1,000 
up,  you  will  be  better  served  by  one  of  the  numerous 
motor-driven  devices  which  are  on  the  market.  These 
operate  in  different  ways.  On  one,  for  example,  the 
cutting  tool  is  a  horizontal  disk,  with  teeth  set  on  its 
upper  edge,  which  makes  considerably  more  than  1,000 
revolutions  a  minute.  Another  consists  of  a  sand  belt 
running  at  a  high  rate  of  speed  over  two  drums.  The 
operator  can  thus  in  a  few  seconds  rub  open  the  envelop 
folds  of  as  many  letters  as  he  can  hold  in  his  hand. 

By  having  every  envelop  opened  on  two  sides,  you 
can  make  sure  that  all  enclosures  will  be  removed.  A 
great  danger  in  any  method  of  opening  mail  is  injury  to 
the  contents.  If  the  clerk  is  careless,  it  is  easy  to  sfit 
a  check  or  bill,  or  halve  an  important  order  so  that  one 
or  two  items  become  illegible.  The  easiest  way  to  avoid 
this  is  to  hold  a  bunch  of  envelops  in  your  hand  and  jog 
them  on  a  table  top.     The  contents  fall  to  the  bottom. 


196 


1 — 

Arrival  of  mail:  post  office  or  maifman 

Opening  the  envelops 

Time-stamping  letters 

"Cashing  in"  on  remittances 

P      Incoming 

Giving  orders  the  right  of  way 

Preliminary  reading  and  sorting 

Distributing 

Getting  "specials"  to  the  right  man 

Routing  the  letters  that  concern  several  departments 

Dictation 

Handling 
the  mail 

Writing 
your  letters 

Form  paragraphs 

Form  letters 

Printed  blanks 

Standardized  typing 

Signing  the  letter 

Collecting 

Outgomg 

Folding  and  enclosing 

Sealing 

Stamping 

Mailing 

Analysis  reports  of  incoming  and  outgoing  mail 

-  Management  - 

Periodical  reading  by  chief 

Stamp  and  expense  apportionment 

FIGURE  16:     One  way  to  cut  the  cost  of  cor-  chart  you  can  easily  follow  the  course  a  letter 

respondence  is  to  lay  out  an  effective  routine  takes  from  the  time  it  is  received  until  the  re- 

for  handling  the  mail,  like  that  described  in  ply  is  mailed.     There's  no  reason  for  mistakes 

thia  chapter,   for  example.     On  this   simple  in  routine  when  it's  all  mapped  out  like  this. 

197 


The  Number  of  Operations  an 

Hour  if 

One  Operation  is  Performed  in  tlie  Time  Shown. 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

Time 

One 
Hour 

.01 

6000 

.51 

117 

I.OI 

59.5 

1.5! 

39.7 

2.01 

29.8 

2.51 

23.9 

3.01 

19.9 

.02 

3000 

.52 

115 

1.02 

58.9 

1.52 

39.4 

2.02 

29.7 

2.52 

23.8 

3.02 

19.8 

.03 

2000 

.53 

113 

1.03 

58.3 

1.53 

39.0 

2.03 

29.5 

2.53 

23.7 

3.03 

19.8 

.04 

1500 

.54 

III 

1.04 

57.7 

1.54 

38.9 

2.04 

29.4 

2.54 

23.6 

3.04 

19.7 

.05 

1200 

.55 

109 

1.05 

57.2 

1.55 

33.7 

2.05 

29.2 

2.55 

23.5 

3.05 

19.6 

.06 

1000 

.56 

107 

1.06 

56.7 

1.56 

38.4 

2.06 

29.1 

2.56 

23.4 

3.06 

19.6 

.07 

857 

.57 

105 

1.07 

56.1 

1.57 

38.2 

2.07 

28.9 

2.57 

23.3 

3.07 

19.5 

.08 

750 

.58 

103 

1.08 

55.7 

t.58 

37.9 

2.08 

28.8 

2.58 

23.2 

3.08 

19.4 

.09 

676 

.59 

101 

1.09 

55.1 

1.59 

37.7 

2.09 

28.7 

2.59 

23.1 

3.09 

19.4 

.10 

600 

.60 

too 

I.IO 

54.6 

1.60 

37.5 

2.10 

28.5 

2.60 

23.0 

3,10 

19.3 

.11 

545 

..er 

08.4 

1.11 

54.1 

1.61 

37.2 

2.11 

28.4 

2.61 

22.9 

3.11 

19.2 

.12 

500 

'.62 

96.7 

1.12 

53.6 

1.62 

37.0 

2.12 

23.3 

2.62 

22.9 

3.12 

19.2 

.13 

462 

.63 

95.3 

}.I3 

53.1 

1.63 

36.8 

2.13 

28.1 

2.63 

22.8 

3.13 

19.1 

.14 

428 

.64 

93.7 

1.14 
1.15 

52.6 

1.64 

36.5 

2.14 

28.0 

2.64 

22,7 

3.14 

19.1 

.15 

'400 

.65 

92.3 

52.2 

1.65 

36.3 

2.15 

27.9 

2.65 

22.6 

3.15 

19.0 

.16 

375 

.66 

90.9 

1.16 

51.7 

1.66 

36.1 

2.16 

27.7 

2.66 

22.5 

3.16 

18.9 

.17 

353 

.67 

89.7 

1.17 

51.3 

1.67 

35.9 

2.17 

27.6 

2.67 

22.4 

3.17 

18.9 

.18 

333 

.68 

88.2 

1.18 

50.7 

1.68 

35.7 

2.18 

27.5 

2.68 

22.3 

3.18 

18.8 

.19 

316 

.69 

87.0 

1.19 

50.3 

1.69 

35.5 

2.19 

27.3 

2.69 

22.3 

3.19 

18.8 

.20 

300 

.70 

«5.7 

.1.20 

50.0 

,1.70 

35.3 

2.20 

27.2 

2.70 

22.2 

3.20 

18.7 

■21 

286 

.71 

84.1 

1.21 

49.6 

1.71 

35:2 

2.21 

27.1 

2.71 

22.1 

3.21 

18.6 

.22 

273 

.72 

83.3 

1.22 

49.2 

1.72 

35.0 

2.22 

27.0 

2.72 

22.0 

3.22 

18.6 

.23 

261 

.73 

82.3 

1.23 

48.7 

1.73 

34.8 

2.23 

26.9 

2.73 

21.9 

3.23 

18.5 

.24 

250 

.74 

81.8 

1.24 

48.4 

1.74 

34.6 

2.24 

26.7 

2.74 

21.8 

3.24 

18.5 

.25 

240 

.75 

80.0 

1.25 

48.0 

1.75 

34.4 

2.25 

26.6 

2.75 

21.8 

3.25 

18.4 

.26 

230 

.76 

78.9 

1.26 

47.6 

1.76 

34.0 

2.26 

26.5 

2.76 

21.7 

3.26 

18.4 

.27 

222 

.77 

77.7 

1.27 

47.2 

1.77 

33.8 

2.27 

26.4 

2.77 

21.6 

3.27 

18.3 

.28 

214 

.78 

76.9 

1.28 

46.8 

1.78 

33.7 

2.28 

26.3 

2.78 

21.5 

3.28 

18.2 

.29 

207 

.79 

76.0 

1.29 

46.5 

1.79 

33.5 

2.29 

26.2 

2.79 

21.5 

3.29 

18.2 

.30 

200 

.80 

75.0 

1.30 

46.2 

1.80 

33.3 

2.30 

26.0 

2.80 

21.4 

3.30 

18.1 

.31 

193 

.81 

74.2 

1.31 

45.8 

1.81 

33.1 

2.31 

25.9 

2.81 

21.3 

3.31 

18.1 

.32 

187 

.82 

73.1 

1.32 

45.4 

1.82 

32.9 

2.32 

25.8 

2.82 

21.2 

3.32 

18.0 

.33 

182 

,83 

72.3 

1.33 

45.1 

1.83 

32.7 

2.33 

25:7 

2.83 

21.2 

3.33 

18.0 

.34 

176 

,84 

71.4 

1.34 

44.7 

1.84 

32.0 

2.34 

25.6 

2.84 

21.1 

3.34 

17.9 

.35 

171 

.85 

70.7 

1.35 

44.4 

1.85 

32.4 

2.35 

25.5 

2.85 

21.0 

3.35 

17.9 

.36 

167 

,86 

69.7 

1.36 

44.1 

1.86 

32.2 

2.36 

25.4 

2.86 

20.9 

3.36 

17.8 

.37 

162 

.87 

69.0 

1.37 

43.7 

1.87 

32.2 

2.37 

25.3 

2.87 

20.9 

3.37 

17.8 

.38 

163 

.88 

68.1 

1.38 

43.5 

1.88 

32.0 

2.38 

25.2 

2.88 

20.8 

3.38 

17.7 

.39 

154 

.89 

67.3 

1.39 

43.1 

1.89 

31.7 

2.39 

25.1 

2.89 

20.7 

3.39 

17.6 

.40 

150 

.90 

66.6 

1.40 

42.8 

1.90 

31.5 

2.40 

25.0 

2.90 

20.6 

3.40 

17.6 

.42 

146 

.91 

66.0 

1.41 

42.6 

1.91 

31.4 

2.41 

24.8 

2.91 

20.6 

3.41 

17.5 

143 

.92 

65.2 

1.42 

42.5 

1.92 

31.2 

2.42 

24.7 

2.92 

20.5 

3.42 

17.5 

.43 

139 

.93 

64.6 

1.43 

41.9 

1.93 

31.0 

2.43 

24.6 

2.93 

20.4 

3.43 

17.4 

.44 

136 

.94 

63.8 

1.44 

41.6 

1.94 

30.9 

2.44 

24.5 

2.94 

20.4 

3.44 

17.4 

.45 

133 

.95 

63.2 

1.45 

41.4 

1.95 

30.7 

2.45 

24.4 

2.95 

20.3 

3.45 

17.3 

.46 

130 

.96 

62.5 

1.46 

41.1 

1.96 

30.6 

2.46 

24.3 

2.96 

20.2 

3.46 

17.3 

.47 

128 

.97 

62.0 

1.47 

40.8 

1.97 

30.4 

2.47 

24.2 

2.97 

20.2 

3.47 

17.2 

.48 

125 

.98 

61.2 

1.43 

40.6 

1.98 

30.3 

2.48 

24.1 

2.98 

20.1 

3.48 

17.2 

.49 

122 

.99 

60.7 

1.49 

40.3 

1.99 

30.1 

2.49 

24.0 

2.99 

20.0 

3.49 

17.1 

.50 

J  20 

1.00 

60.0 

1.50 

40.0 

2.00 

30.0 

2.50 

24.0 

3.00 

20.0 

3.50 

17.1 

FIGURE  17:  You  can  easily  see  from  this 
table  just  what  savings  are  possible  by  stand- 
ardizing the  routine  of  handling  correspond- 
ence.   A  basis  for  comparing  the  effectiveness 


of  the  various  workers  is  also  provided,  so  that 
the  work  may  be  evenly  distributed  according 
to  each  one's  capacity,  which  helps,  of  course, 
to   keep    down   the    number    of    inequalities. 


198 


SCHEDULING  THE  MAH. 


and  plenty  of  space  remains  at  the  other  edge  of  the 
envelop  to  be  cut.  The  envelops  are  then  ''evened" 
lightly  on  the  other  edge  before  applying  them  edgewise 
against  the  sand  belt. 

Once  the  envelops  are  opened,  the  careful  sorting  and 
routing  of  the  letters  so  that  they  reach  the  proper  depart- 
ments and  persons  promptly,  saves  much  time  and  useless 
labor  in  the  office.  In  one  mail-order  house,  where  the 
mail  wagon  brings  in  every  day  an  average  of  6,000 
letters,  the  sorting  desks  are  placed  adjoining  the  open- 
ing machine.  The  two  clerks  who  sort  the  mail  sit  in 
front  of  a  pigeonholed  rack  which  is  similar  to  a  post 
office  "galley,"  or  smaller. 

Each  compartment  in  this  sorting  rack  is  labeled 
with  the  name  of  a  department  or  person.  The  clerks 
quickly  scan  through  the  letters,  time-stamp  them,  and 
toss  them  into  the  proper  compartments.  When  it  is 
impossible  to  decide  by  the  contents  of  a  letter  where 
it  should  go,  it  is  tossed  into  a  special  compartment  for 
later  investigation. 

Salesmen  in  this  concern,  and  practically  all  regular 
customers,  use  distinctive  red-edged  envelops  in  sending 
orders  and  remittances.  These  envelops  are  picked  out 
as  soon  as  the  mail  is  received,  and  are  opened  and  sorted 
ahead  of  others.  Thus  all  orders  are  started  on  their 
way  at  the  earliest  possible  minute.  Remittances  are 
carried  in  a  locked  valise  to  the  cashier's  department. 
Miscellaneous  communications  are  left  to  the  last,  to  be 
sorted  after  the  mass  of  mail  has  been  distributed  to  the 
proper  departments. 

One  hardware  concern  avoids  delay  by  having  its  own 
wagon  at  the  post  office  every  morning  at  6 :30.  Clerks 
are  at  work  in  the  mail-opening  department  by  7 ;  and  by 
8  o'clock,  when  the  rest  of  the  office  employees  arrive, 
most  of  the  letters  are  ready  for  distribution. 

Corresponding  with  the  compartments  in  the 
clerk's  rack  are  the  divisions  in  the  office  "mail  bag," 
a  device  used  to  distribute  the  mail.  Office  boys  have 
regular  routes  which  they  cover  completely  every  25 
minutes.  Each  desk  on  these  routes  has  two  containers 
for  papers.  Into  the  right  box  go  incoming  letters  as 
well  as  interhouse  communications  and  miscellaneous 
messages;  in  the  left  box  all  outgoing  items,  including 
signed  letters,  are  placed. 


Perhaps  you 
can  use  this 
plan 


This  speeds  up 
the  mail 


Here  is  another 
adaptable   plan 


199 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


A  device  that  At  each   desk   the   boys  distribute   incoming   com-i 

saves  time  munications,  and  take  away  outgoing  messages.     The' 

boy  assorts  and  places  in  the  correct  compartments  of 
his  bag  these  outgoing  items,  which  are  already  marked 
for  the  proper  department  or  place  where  they  are  to  be 
taken.  He  then  distributes  them  to  the  proper  desks 
on  his  route.  He  calls  last  at  the  maiUng  room  where 
he  leaves  the  signed  letters  he  has  collected. 
How  to  route  In  the  place  of  this ''mail  bag  "device,  a  shoe  manu- 

letters  through       facturer  uses  a  rubber-tired  wagon,  which  has  compart- 
the  office  ments  arranged  in  order  for  the  various  desks  where  mail 

and  messages  are  to  be  delivered  and  collected.  Regular 
routes  are  followed.  There  are  four  floors  in  the  factory 
office,  and  the  route  on  each  floor  is  planned  so  that  it 
will  end  at  the  elevator  door.  This  schedule  saves  time, 
avoids  confusion,  and  helps  to  assure  the  prompt  deUvery 
of  every  piece  of  mail.  The  wagon  is  able  to  carry  much 
more  than  the  mail  boy  can  with  his  bag,  and  with  the 
larger  compartments  there  is  less  danger  of  papers 
getting  mixed  and  sent  to  the  wrong  people,  causing 
delay  and  clogging  the  whole  mechanics  of  mail-handling. 
Getting  the  If  you  receive  a  number  of  letters  which  have  to  be 

letter  to  the  handled  by  two,  three,  or  four  people,  you  must  make 

right  man  sure  that  each  correspondent  concerned  will  get  such 

letters  without  too  much  delay.  In  a  western  mail- 
order house  which  sells  chiefly  to  farmers  and  small- 
town customers,  the  orders  often  call  for  several  articles, 
often  from  widely  separated  departments — a  pump,  a 
barrel  of  sugar,  a  suit  of  clothes,  for  instance.  A  com- 
plaint, an  inquiry,  and  an  order  were  all  discussed  in  the 
letter  of  one  customer. 

To  make  sure  that  no  department  is  delayed  in  its 
work  by  letters  being  held  up  in  other  departments, 
regular  schedules  have  been  adopted  in  this  concern. 
The  time  allowed  each  correspondent  for  handling  his 
letters  is  four  hours;  at  the  end  of  that  time  he  must 
have  finished  the  letters,  or  be  able  to  give  a  good 
reason  for  not  having  done  so. 

The  girls  who  read  and  sort  the  mail  are  thoroughly 
familiar  with  all  departments.  Besides,  they  have  a  fist 
showing  the  name  and  place  on  the  schedule  of  every 
department  and  person  who  regularly  handle  corre- 
spondence. When  a  letter  has  to  go  to  more  than  one 
person,  a  schedule  shp  is  attached  stamped  with  the  names 


200 


SCHEDULING  THE  MAIL 


of  the  proper  persons  in  the  order  in  which  they  are  to     Reducing 
receive  the  letter;  the  time  to  be  taken  by  each  in  han-     errors  to  1% 
dling  it  is  also  marked.     At  the  end  of  the  allotted  four 
hours,  the  mail  boy  collects  these  letters  and  distributes 
them  again  to  the  persons  next  in  order. 

The  sorting  clerks  learn  to  scan  through  letters  very 
quickly  and  note  in  a  moment  which  departments  should 
receive  them.  Out  of  the  average  daily  mail,  less  than 
1%  are  returned  because  of  faulty  scheduling. 

Even  more  precise  is  the  system  in  a  furniture  factory. 
Here,  the  opening  department  starts  work  promptly  at 
8  o'clock.  Orders  are  given  a  clear  track,  ahead  of  every 
other  kind  of  mail,  and  the  schedule  on  which  they  are 
handled  is  as  follows : 

8:00— Mail  opened. 

8:15 — Placed  on  credit  man's  desk. 

8:45 — O.  K.'d  orders  sent  to  chief  routing  clerk. 

9:15 — Handed  to  entry  clerk  in  shipping  department. 

Subsequent  dehveries  pass  through  the  departments 
with  equal  speed.  Such  a  system  serves  to  minimize 
delays  and  save  confusion  by  fixing  a  definite  method 
of  handhng  the  routine. 

People  who  write  to  business  houses,  even  men  who 
are  in  business  for  themselves,  often  fail  to  realize  that 
their  letters  are  units  among  many,  and  that  if  these 
happen  to  fall  outside  of  the  regular  routine  of  mail,  they 
need  a  subaddress  to  the  specific  department  or  individual 
concerned.  A  minor  official  in  a  box  factory,  for  example, 
wrote  to  a  supply  house  for  important  information  in 
connection  with  a  customer's  order.  The  reply  was 
addressed  simply  to  the  concern,  and  there  was  nothing 
in  the  letter  to  indicate  its  importance  or  the  man  to 
whom  it  was  to  go. 

No  central  correspondence  file  was  kept  in  this  office.     How  to  prevent 
Each  executive's  letters  were  filed  in  a  personal  cabinet,     letters  from 
and  each  department  filed  separately.     The  sorting  clerk     heing  lost 
searched  through  all  the  department  files,  trying  to  trace 
the  owner  of  this  letter.     Fmding  no  carbon  of  the  letter 
that  had  been  written  to  the  supply  house,  she  returned 
the  letter,  with  a  note  to  the  effect  that  the  files  had  been 
thoroughly  searched  and  the  owner  of  the  letter  could 
not  be  located.     She  concluded  by  saying  that  the  in- 
formation must  have  been  sent  to  them  by  mistake. 


Some  points  in 

addressing 

letters 


201 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Why  letters 
should  be 
addressed  to 
individuals 


A  file  that  helps 
write  letters 


How  the  special 
file  is  used 


Meantime,  the  executive  to  whom  the  letter  really  be- 
longed had  impatiently  awaited  its  coming.  He  wrote 
a  second  time  and  telegraphed,  before  he  finally  secured 
the  information  he  needed. 

In  the  endeavor  to  prevent  rebating  and  similar 
evils,  many  concerns  formerly  insisted  upon  mail  being 
addressed  to  the  house.  Now,  however,  the  trend  is  in 
the  other  direction ;  all  individuals  with  whom  they  have 
correspondence  are  requested  to  refer  their  rephes  to 
the  specific  department  or  person.  One  concern  has  the 
request  made  prominently  in  red  type  at  the  foot  of  the 
page.  This  pohcy,  together  with  a  carefully  planned 
filing  system,  centrally  located,  will  usually  enable  a 
clerk  to  fix  on  the  person  for  whom  any  letter  is  intended. 

Such  a  filing  system  is  now  in  use  by  a  manufacturer 
of  office  appliances.  His  sorting  clerks  have  a  special 
three-drawer  filing  cabinet  within  easy  reach  of  the  sort- 
ing table.  In  all  departments  where  correspondence  is 
not  purely  routine,  a  third  carbon  is  made  of  every  letter 
and  sent  to  the  mail-sorting  department  to  be  filed  in 
this  cabinet.  The  number  of  letters  handled  in  this  way 
is  not  great,  and  the  task  of  filing  the  extra  carbons  is 
easily  performed.  Whenever  an  incoming  letter  carries 
no  indication  of  the  person  for  whom  it  is  intended,  the 
clerk  refers  to  the  carbons  in  the  filing  cabinet.  The 
initials  on  the  carbon,  when  it  is  located,  immediately 
show  who  is  to  receive  the  letter. 

Each  drawer  of  the  cabinet  contains  carbons  for  one 
month,  filed  geographically.  Thus,  when  the  top  drawer 
is  being  used  to  file  letters  for  March,  the  middle  drawer 
contains  January  carbons  and  in  the  bottom  drawer  are 
put  the  February  carbons. 

As  soon  as  a  miscellaneous  letter  arrives,  the  carbon 
which  it  answers  is  destroyed.  All  other  carbons  are 
destroyed  at  the  end  of  three  months.  January  carbons, 
for  instance,  are  thrown  away  at  the  beginning  of  April, 
February  carbons  at  the  beginning  of  May.  This  sys- 
tem keeps  dead  material  constantly  cleaned  out.  For 
a  smaller  office,  a  single  drawer  divided  into  three  com- 
partments would  answer  the  same  purpose. 

In  order  to  be  sure  that  all  of  its  letters  are  uniform, 
one  large  company  has  devised  a  standard  sample  letter 
(Figure  18)  on  which  every  stenographer  and  typist  is 
required  to  pattern  her  work.     This  standard  form  shows 


202 


G.  M.  JOHNSTON 

26  WATER  STREET 


STENOGRAPHERS  AND  TYPISTS 


Milwaukee 
August  9,  19IQ 


J.  A.  Blaisdell  Company 
2967  Main  Street 
Indianapolis,  Indiana 

Gentlemen: 

As  we  desire  uniformity  of  style  in  the  arrangement  of  all 
letters  leaving  our  office,  you  will  please  use  this  letter  as 
a  model  for  future  correspondence. 

The  "M"  of  Milwaukee  should  be  below  and  slightly  to  the  right  of 
the  printed  heading;  the  date  should  be  centered  underneath 
exactly  as  shown. 

Begin  the  letter  addressing  the  customer  one  space  beneath  the 
dot  on  the  upper  left-hand  side.   (Where  the  margins  are  to  be 
unusually  wide,  because  of  a  short  letter,  start  one  space  below 
but  to  the  right  of  the  dot.)  In  cases  where  the  letter  is  to  a 
small  town  and  no  street  address  is  given,  show  the  city  on  the 
second  line  and  the  state  on  the  third  line.  Where  a  four— line 
address  is  necessary,  start  on  a  line  with  the  dot.  In  the  case 
of  a  five -line  address  start  one  space  above  the  dot. 

The  left-hand  margins  of  paragraphs  must  be  in  line  with  the 
heading;  double  space  between  paragraphs. 

In  closing,  use  the  phrase  "Yours  very  truly,"  starting  exactly  in 
the  middle  of  the  sheet;  sign  "G.  M.  Johnston  Company,"  starting 
underneath  the  "s"  of  "Yours."  When  the  letter  is  to  be  signed 
place  the  word  "By"  two  spaces  below  cind  immediately  underneath 
the  initial  "G."  Have  the  correspondent's  cind  the  stenographer's 
initials  on  a  line  with  the  left-hand  margin,  two  spaces  lower 
than  "G.  M.  Johnston  Company."  Regulate  the  width  of  margin  by 
the  length  of  the  letter  to  be  written. 

When  the  letter  cannot  be  written  on  one  sheet  use  a  special 
second  sheet,  of  the  same  grade  of  stationery. 

Show  "-2-"  thus,  two  spaces  below  the  heading,  and  continue  the 
letter  three  spaces  lower  than  the  "-2-"  with  the  same  width 
margin  as  on  the  first  sheet. 


GMJiUN 


Yours  very  truly, 

G.  M.  Johnston  Company 

By 


FIGURE  18:    There's  no  excuse  for  errors  in  salutation,    the    proper    margin,    the    correct 

the  style  when  each  stenographer  and  typist  close,  and  so  on.     And  it's  about  as  quick  a 

has  a  standard  letter  like  this  for  a  guide.     It  way  as  there  is  of  showing  the  new  stenog- 

shows  exactly  where  to  place  the  date  line  and  rapher  or  typist  just  what  is  expected  of  her. 

203 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Why  a  standard 
style  improves 
letters 


Handling    out- 
going mail 


Where  short 
cuts  and  ma- 
chines reduce 
costs 


how  to  place  the  date  and  salutation;  the  correct  words 
to  use  in  the  opening  and  close;  proper  margins;  the 
method  of  writing  letters  which  are  more  than  one  page 
long,  and  so  on.  Instead  of  a  list  of  negative  instruc- 
tions telling  what  not  to  do,  the  stenographer  has  before 
her  a  complete  letter  correctly  typed.  In  case  she  is  in 
doubt  on  any  point,  a  glance  at  the  standard  form  shows 
her  the  correct  way. 

Another  device  used  by  this  firm  is  a  small  dot  printed 
on  the  letter  sheet,  showing  the  proper  place  to  begin 
typing  the  date.  The  first  figure  of  the  date,  when  it  is 
written,  conceals  the  dot.  At  the  point  where  the  address 
ought  to  appear  another  dot  serves  to  show  the  typist 
the  proper  place  to  start.  This  method  standardizes 
all  letters. 

Mailing  letters,  unlike  receiving  them,  is  a  problem  of 
assembly  at  a  common  point.  In  one  office,  the  mail 
bo3^s  collect  signed  letters  every  hour  and  carry  them 
to  the  mailing  room.  Four  o'clock  is  the  latest  hour  for 
receiving  regular  mail,  so  the  mailing  clerks  have  plenty 
of  time  to  fold,  seal,  and  stamp  all  letters  ready  for  send- 
ing. A  rack,  arranged  in  the  same  manner  as  the  sorting 
clerk's  desk,  receives  these  letters. 

All  outgoing  letters  are  counted  by  departments,  in 
order  that  the  accounting  room  may  make  the  correct 
distribution  of  postage  charges.  Sealing  and  stamping 
are  done  automatically,  and  a  counter  is  attached,  which 
records  the  number  of  letters  passing  through;  this 
also  is  done  automatically. 

Several  types  of  mailing  machines  may  be  secured. 
Some  are  driven  by  motors,  while  others  are  hand-oper- 
ated. Some  do  nothing  but  seal  envelops,  others  only 
affix  stamps.  The  volume  of  mail  which  your  office  has 
to  handle  will  determine  whether  you  will  pay  $15  or 
SI 00  for  a  maifing-machine ;  but  you  need  not  write  more 
than  50  letters  in  the  course  of  a  day  to  make  it  profit- 
able to  introduce  a  mechanical  device  to  take  the  place 
of  the  mail  boy  with  his  guimny  sponge. 

Thus,  at  practically  every  point  in  the  routine  han- 
dling of  the  mail,  it  is  now  possible  to  introduce  a  machine 
or  a  short-cut  method  that  will  save  time  and  make  the 
mails  do  more  for  your  business — at  lower  per-letter  cost. 


204 


CHAPTER  XI 


MAKING  THE  OFFICE  FORCE  RESPONSIBLE 

Actual  ignorance  about  the  possibilities  of  a  job  often     How  time 
prevails  even  among  employers.  studies  help 

A  boy  who  had  been  doing  piece  work  in  a  woodwork-     in  the  office 
ing  factory  secured  a  position  in  a  large  Chicago  office. 
He  was  set  to  work  in  the  mailing  room  with  several 
other  boys  doing  up  packages  of  standard-sized  paper 
ready  to  be  sent  to  prospective  customers. 

The  average  amount  of  work  that  had  been  turned 
out  and  was  considered  a  fair  day's  work  was  50  pack- 
ages. By  arranging  his  materials  and  wrapping  paper 
where  he  could  reach  them  quickly,  the  new  boy  was 
easily  able  to  finish  150  packages  before  quitting  time. 
Trained  to  do  away  with  lost  motions  by  his  previous 
experience,  in  which  a  bigger  output  had  meant  larger 
pay,  he  wrapped  three  packages  to  every  one  for  his 
companions.  According  to  the  standard  which  he  set, 
they  had  been  less  than  33^-%  efficient,  yet  their  em- 
ployers had  not  realized  the  big  waste  that  was  occurring. 

While  this  is  an  exceptional  case,  it  is  true  that  in     This  plan  cut 
many  offices  there  is  a  great  discrepancy  between  the     time-wasting 
actual  performance  and  the  normal  performance.     Only     gossip 
by  determining  of  what  a  fair  day's  work  consists  can 
you  do  away  with  waste  and  have  a  correct  basis  on 
which  to  fix  salaries. 

Time  studies  in  many  offices  show  that  gossip  across 
the  machines  is  one  of  the  greatest  sources  of  losing  time 
among  stenographers.  In  order  to  minimize  this  waste, 
the  office  manager  in  a  manufacturing  concern  devised  the 
successful  plan  for  placing  the  desks  showm  in  Figure  19. 
The  two  correspondents  and  their  assistants  had  desks 
together.  The  two  stenographers  who  did  most  of  the 
work  for  these  four  men  and  assisted  the  four  stenogra- 
phers doing  general  work,  sat  beside  the  correspondents. 

The  manager  himself  sat  behind  the  four  stenographers 
who  did  general  work.     This  arrangement,  he  found,  did 


205 


Q 

Q 

Correspondent's 
Assistant 

Correspondent's 
Assistant 

Stenographer's 
Assistant 

Correspondent 

Correspondent 

Stenographer's 
Assistant 

O 

O 

a 

O 

Stenographer 

Stenographer 

O 

O 

Stenographer 

Stenographer 

I, J 

u 

Manager 

o 

FIGURE  19:  Office  gossip  seems  a  pretty 
serious  problem  sometimes,  for  it's  one  of  the 
worst  time-wasters.  Even  so,  it  isn't  always 
as  difficult  to  remedy  as  it  seems.     One  man- 


ager worked  it  by  simply  rearranging  the  desks 
as  shown  here.  The  manager  has  a  full  view 
of  all  the  other  desks.  The  plan  he  used  is 
described  in  greater  detail  on  pages  205  and  207. 


206 


THE  OFFICE  FORCE 


away  almost   entirely  with   the   gossiping   which   had     Better  pay  for 
gone  on  from  desk  to  desk.  better  work 

Watchfulness,  however,  is  not  the  sole  or  even  the 
principal  means  on  which  the  scientific  manager  relies 
to  secure  good  work.  Supervision  of  labor  for  purposes 
of  discipUne  is  bound  to  prove  costly.  For  really  effective 
work,  the  laborer  himself  must  be  eager  to  do  his  best. 
The  incentive  must  come  from  within,  rather  than  from 
without.  The  one  method  that  is  almost  invariably 
certain  to  produce  the  desired  results  quickly  is  to  give 
better  pay  for  better  work. 

It  is  true,  however,  that  it  is  nearly  always  necessary 
for  the  "man  above"  to  discover  and  correct  the  errors 
which  lessen  the  effectiveness  of  his  employees.  They 
themselves  generally  cannot  or  will  not  put  forth  their 
best  efforts  without  guidance. 

In  one  office,  which  employs  several  stenographers,     Breaking  in 
the  aim  is  not  so  much  to  correct  the  employee  who     the    new 
has  learned  wrong  methods  as  to  train  her  in  the  correct     stenographer 
way  at  the  start.     Newcomers  are  not  thrown  at  once 
into  the  midst  of  company  affairs,  but  are  instructed  for 
a  few  days  in  handling  the  correspondence  which  they 
will  receive.    A  great  many  letters  written  in  this  concern 
include  technical  terms  familiar  to  the  trade,  and  on 
her  first  day  a  new  girl  copies  a  list  of  500  of  these.    After 
she  has  copied  them  several  times  she  spends  a  few  hours 
inventing  shorthand  signs  for  those  which  might  give 
her  trouble  in  taking  dictation. 

No  definition  of  terms  is  given  on  the  list,  but  the     g}ie  becomes 
student  becomes  famihar  with   the  meanings  by  the     competent 
second  degree  in  her  training,  which  consists  of  copying     quickly 
engineers'    reports,    estimates,    contracts,    interdepart- 
mental letters  and  notes  as  a  means  of  increasing  her 
vocabulary  of  technical  terms. 

After  finishing  this  second  step  she  takes  light  dicta- 
tion, such  as  acknowledgment  of  orders,  and  non-technical 
letters  from  men  who  are  known  as  easy  dictators.  This 
training  usually  takes  a  week  or  10  days,  and  the  novice 
in  that  time  loses  her  nervousness,  becomes  famihar  with 
names  of  departments  and  the  men  in  them,  knows  her 
associates  and  becomes  a  fixture  in  the  establishment. 
She  is  able  to  approach  her  duties  in  a  competent  way. 

Bad  methods  of  working,  improper  working  condi- 
tions, lack  of  proper  standards  or  simply  a  failure  on  the 


207 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


What  standard- 
ization can  do 


A ''book of 
standards" 
may  help 


Proper  pay 
usually  gets 
results 


part  of  employer  or  employee  to  realize  the  possibilities 
of  a  job  are  bound  to  result  in  a  lowering  of  normal 
production.  The  remedy  lies  in  studying  scientifically 
the  possibihties  of  every  job  in  advance,  and  then  stand- 
ardizing the  operations  of  the  office.  With  such  stand- 
ards fixed  it  is  possible  to  set  salaries  on  a  uniform  basis. 

Figure  20  shows  the  results  of  an  investigation  covering 
50  offices.  These  standards  represent  the  average  pro- 
duction for  the  different  kinds  of  work  in  a  large  variety 
of  concerns.  Special  conditions,  of  course,  cause  varia- 
tions in  offices.  Where  letters,  for  instance,  are  highly 
technical,  it  is  really  impossible  to  write  as  many  as 
where  they  are  simpler. 

If  the  amount  of  work  is  sufficient  to  warrant  it,  it  is 
well  to  have  a  ''book  of  standards"  which  clearly  defines 
the  method  of  performing  every  operation  and  the  stand- 
ard rate  for  it.  Here  is  an  illustration  of  the  way  in 
which  such  a  book  reads  in  a  large  concern: 

ADDRESSING  SECTION 

Standard  based  on  $5  salary  per  week. 


3-Line  Hand  Addressing 
Operation  No.  120 

Addressing  Envelops 

1 .  Name 

2 .  Town 

3.  State 


4-Line  Hand  Addressing 
Operation  No.  121 

Addressing  Envelops 

1 .  Name 

2.  Street  address 

3 .  Town 

4.  State 


Standard  108  per  hour.        Standard  87  per  hour. 

The  incentive  for  employees  to  reach  the  standard  set 
for  any  operation  is  the  spur  of  pay  and  promotion.  A 
piece  rate  puts  every  worker  doing  one  kind  of  work  on 
the  same  basis.  If  the  rate  is  fairly  set,  it  is  just  both 
to  employer  and  employee;  moreover,  it  gives  the  em- 
ployee an  incentive  to  prove  his  real  quahty  by  doing 
more  than  the  standard  task. 

The  unit  of  pay  for  stenographers  varies  in  different 
offices.  One  concern  pays  for  the  number  of  words 
written,  another  for  the  number  of  fines,  and  still  another 
for  the  number  of  square  inches  of  typewritten  matter. 
A  simple  device  can  be  attached  to  the  typewriter  which 
will  register  each  time  the  space  bar  is  touched,  thus 


208 


Mail-handling  Standards 

Operation 

Conditions 

Hourly  rate 

Opening  letters  and  sorting 
them  for  distribution 

A      Careful  first  reading 

60 

B       Hasty  first  reading 

200 

Registering  orders 

Fully  interpreted 

200 

Writing  orders 

Based  on  orders  averaging  five  items 

20 

Dictating  letters 

Based  on  letters  averaging  ^  of  a 
page  iii  length 

35 

Typing  letters 

Based  on. letters  averaging  %  of  a 
page  in  length 

15 

Folding  and  enclosing  letters 

Spurt  speed  is  possible  on  this  work 
in  most  offices 

500 

Stamping  envefops 

A      By  hand,  speed  possible  for 
only  an  hour  or  so 

3.000 

B      Hand  machines 

3,000 

C      Power  machines 

10,000 

Writing  invoices 

A      When  description  is  brief— an 
average  length  of  five  lines 

75 

B      When  description  is  complicated 
-an  average  length  of  five  lines 

20 

Addressing^  envelops 

A      By  hand 

125 

B      On  the  typewriter 

225 

FIGURE  20:    "How  long  should  it  take?"  is  ability.    The  experience  of  50  office  managers 

answered  by  the  chart  shown  here.     Under  was  studied  in  preparing  this  chart  which  is 

normal  conditions  you  would  be  justified  in  more  fully  described  on  the  opposite  page.     It 

expecting  these  results  from  employees  of  fair  may  help  you  set  a   standard   in  your  office. 

209 


.08 
.17 

.25 

.17 

.33 
.50 

.25 
,50 
.75 

.33 

.67 

1.00 

.42 

.83 

1.25 

.50 
l.OO 
1.50 

.58 
1.17 
1.75 

.67 
1.33 
2.00 

.75 
1.50 
2.25 

.83 
1.67 
2.50 

.92 
1.83 
2.75 

l.OO 
2.00 

3.00 

.33 
.43 
.60 

.67 

.83 

1.00 

1.00 
1.25 
1.50 

1.33 
1.67 
2.00 

1.67 
2.08 
2.50 

2.00 
2.50 
3.00 

2.33 
2.92 
3.50 

2.67 
3.33 
4.00 

3.00 
3.75 
4.50 

3.33 
4.17 
5.00 

3.67 
4.58 
6.50 

4.00 
6.00 

6.00 

.58 
.67 
.75 

1.17 
1.33 
1.50 

1.75 
2.00 
2.25 

2.33 
2.67 
3.00 

2.92 
3.33 
3.75 

3.60 
4.00 
4.60 

4.08 
4.67 
5.25 

4.67 
5.33 
6.00 

5.25 
6.00 
6.75 

5.83 
6.67 
7.50 

6.42 
7.33 
8.25 

7.00 
8.00 

9.00 

.83 

.92 

l.OO 

1.67 
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2.00 

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3.00 

3.33 
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6.50 
6.00 

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9.00 

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9.17 
10.08 
11.00 

10.00 
11.00 

12.00 

1.08 
1.17 
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2.17 
2.33 
2.50 

3.25 
3.50 
3.75 

4.33 
4.67 
5.00 

5.42 
6.83 
6.25 

6.60 
7.00 
7.50 

7.58 
8.17 
8.75 

8.67 

9.33 

10. OO 

9.75 
10.60 
11.25 

10.83 
11.67 
12.50 

11.92 
12.83 
13.75 

13.00 
14.00 

15.00 

1.33 
1.42 
1.50 

2.67 
2.83 
3.00 

4.O0 
4.25 
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5.33 
5.67 
6.00 

6.67 
7.08 
7.50 

8.00 
8.50 
9.00 

9.33 

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10.60 

10.67 
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13.50 

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15. OO 

14.67 
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16.50 

16.0O 
17.00 

18.00 

1.58 
1.67 
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3.17 
3.33 
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4.75 
5.00 
5.25 

6.33 
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7.00 

7.92 
8.33 
8.75 

9.50 
lO.OO 
10.60 

11.08 
11.67 
12.25 

12.67 
13.33 
14.00 

14.25 
15.00 
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16.83 
16.67 
17.50 

17.42 
18.33 
19.25 

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20.00 

21. OO 

1.83 
1.92 
2.00 

3.67 
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4.00 

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lO.OO 

11.00 
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12.00 

12.83 
13.42 
14.00 

14.67 
15.33 
16.00 

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17.26 
18.00 

18.33 
19.17 

20.00 

20.17 
21.08 
22.00 

22.00 
23.00 

24.00 

2.08 
2.17 

2.25 

4.17 
4.33 
4.50 

6.25 
6.60 
6.75 

8.33 
8.67 

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10.42 
10.83 
11.25 

12.50 
13.00 
13.60 

14.58 
15.17 
15.75 

16.67 
17.33 
18.00 

18.75 
19. 60 
20.26 

20.83 
21.67 
22.50 

22.92 
23.83 
24.75 

25. OO 
26.00 

27.00 

2.33 
2.42 
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4.67 
4.83 
5.00 

7.00 
7.25 
7.50 

9.33 

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10. 00 

11.67 
12.08 
12.60 

14.00 
14.50 
15.00 

16.33 
16.92 
17.50 

18.67 
19.33 
20.00 

21.00 
21.75 
22.50 

23.33 
24.17 
25.00 

25.67 
26.58 
27.50 

28.00 
29.00 

30.00 

2.58 
2.66 
2.75 

5.17 
5.33 
5.50 

7.75 
8.00 
8.25 

10.33 
10.67 
11.00 

12.92 
13.33 
13.76 

15.60 
16.00 
16.60 

18.08 
18.67 
19.25 

20.67 
21.33 
22.00 

23.25 
24.00 
24.75 

25.83 
26.67 
27.50 

28.42 
29.33 
30.25 

31.00 
32.00 

33.00 

2.83 
2.92 
3.00 

5.67 
5.83 
6.00 

8.50 
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9.00 

11.33 
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14.17 
14.58 
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17.00 
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18  .OO 

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22.67 
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25.50 
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28.33 
29.17 

30.00 

31.17 
32.08 
33.00 

34.00 
35.00 

36.00 

3.08 
3.17 
3.25 

6.17 
6.33 
6.60 

9.25 
9.50 
9.75 

12.33 
12.67 
13.00 

15.42 
16.83 
16.25 

18.60 
19.00 
19.60 

21.68 
22.17 
22.75 

24.67 
26.33 
26.00 

27.75 
28.60 
29.25 

30.83 
31.67 
32.50 

33.92 
34.83 
35.75 

37.00 
38.00 

39.00 

3.33 
3.42 
3.50 

6.67 
6.83 
7.00 

lO.OO 
10.25 
10.60 

13.33 
13.67 
14.00 

16.67 
17.08 
17.60 

20.00 
20. 60 
21.00 

23.33 
23.92 
24.50 

26.67 
27.33 
28. OO 

30.00 
30.75 
31.60 

33.33 
34.17 

35.00 

36.67 
37.58 

38. 50 

40  .OO 
41.00 

42.00 

FIGURE  21:  This  is  the  scale  used  for  meas- 
uring typewritten  work,  as  described  on  page 
211.  It  is  made  of  transparent  celluloid  and 
is  placed  over  the  typewriting  flush  with  the 


upper  left-hand  comer.  The  number  of  square 
inches  is  shown  in  the  lower  right-hand  comer 
of  the  typewriting.  It's  especially  useful  where 
a  bonus  system  of  payment  is  in  operation. 


210 


THE  OFFICE  FORCE 


automatically  counting  the  number  of  words  written; 
another  device  counts  the  number  of  lines  written  by 
registering  every  time  the  carriage  is  shifted. 

A  few  unnecessary  strokes  on  the  space  bar  or  shifts 
of  the  carriage,  however,  will  boost  the  operator's  salary 
considerably.  This  difficulty  is  done  away  with  in  a 
Philadelphia  office  by  having  an  assistant  to  the  chief 
stenographer,  who  inspects  and  actually  measures  all 
letters.  Her  task  is  made  simple  by  a  transparent  sheet 
of  celluloid  (Figure  21)  which  is  divided  into  half-inch 
squares.  All  letters  are  turned  in  to  her  by  the  stenog- 
raphers, and  she  measures  each  one  with  this  sheet. 
Placing  it  over  the  body  of  the  letter,  which  excludes 
the  salutation  and  complimentary  close,  the  figure  at 
the  lower  right-hand  corner  tells  at  a  glance  the  total 
number  of  square  inches  credited  to  the  stenographer. 
She  records  on  a  separate  card  for  each  girl  the  number 
of  inches  on  each  letter,  and  these  amounts  are  totaled 
every  day.  The  sum  of  the  amounts  for  a  week  forms 
the  basis  on  which  salaries  are  computed. 

Little  more  than  the  application  of  accurate  knowledge 
to  every  operation  in  the  routine  work  of  the  office  will 
save  many  dollars  in  the  course  of  a  year.  Definite 
standards  give  the  manager  a  positive  method  of  identi- 
fying his  best  workers.  Knowing  the  amount  of  work 
done  by  each  individual  and  each  department,  and  the 
price  paid  for  it,  he  can  easily  tell  where  expense  is  too 
large  or  where  more  money  may  profitably  be  used. 
Standards  in  the  office  finally  come  to  mean  lower 
costs  and  in  addition  better  work. 


How  to  measure 
the  stenog- 
rapher's work 


Standards  of 
work  save 
expense 


211 


CHAPTER  XII 

REDUCING  OFFICE  EXPENSE  BY  AUTOMATIC 

ROUTINE 


How  would  you 
have  met  this 
problem? 


These  difficul- 
ties certainly 
looked  big 


Five  thousand  unanswered  letters  in  the  house,  a 
thousand  more  coming  in  every  day,  dozens  of  orders 
arriving  with  every  mail,  each  order  and  letter  requiring 
a  technical  expert's  handling,  and  only  one  correspond- 
ent in  the  house  trained  as  a  technical  expert  is  in  a 
few  words  the  situation  described  by  the  manager  who 
writes  of  his  experiences  in  this  chapter. 

This  rather  unusual  congestion  in  our  correspondence 
was  apparently  caused  by  the  success  of  a  new  product 
and  the  method  we  used  to  market  it.  We  always  had 
sold  entirely  to  professional  people.  Their  orders  ranged 
between  $25  and  $100  each — cash  down.  Then  we  found 
it  advisable  to  make  a  change  in  our  product.  This 
enabled  us  to  sell  the  same  article  in  a  cheaper  form 
for  $5 — and  we  allowed  it  to  be  paid  in  instalments. 

Orders  and  letters  began  pouring  in  as  soon  as  we 
advertised  this  departure.  It  had  been  comparatively 
simple  for  the  correspondence  department  to  handle  four 
$25  cash  orders;  it  was  quite  a  different  task  to  dis- 
pose of  20  $5  instalment  orders.  The  clerical  labor 
involved  in  a  $5  instalment  order  was  much  greater. 
When  we  sold  for  cash  the  money  was  deposited  in  the 
bank  and  that  ended  the  transaction,  in  the  majority  of 
cases.  But  when  the  $5  order  was  entered  and  the 
goods  shipped,  that  was  just  the  beginning  and  several 
other  parts  of  the  transaction  had  to  be  performed. 
Only  $1  had  been  deposited  in  the  bank,  and,  theoreti- 
cally, another  dollar  was  to  come  along  each  month 
for  four  months.  As  each  of  these  dollars  arrived, 
another  clerical  operation  had  to  be  performed;  each 
time  one  failed  to  arrive,  still  more  correspondence  and 
clerical  labor  were  involved. 


212 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


The  methods  we  adopted  to  reHeve  the  resulting  con- 
gestion and  put  our  correspondence  department  on  a 
soundly  effective  basis  will  probably  be  interesting  to 
every  business  man  who  has  letters  to  write,  for  we  have 
secured  some  remarkable  results.  Today,  letters  never 
lie  overnight  unanswered.  The  volume  of  our  corre- 
spondence is  greater  than  ever,  but  no  longer  do  we  need 
to  employ  high-priced  correspondents  to  handle  it.  At 
the  time  of  the  severest  congestion,  we  were  hiring 
assistants  so  rapidly  that  not  enough  room  could  be 
found  in  the  office.  Many  had  to  sit  at  upturned  pack- 
ing boxes  which  served  as  desks.  They  were  tucked 
away  in  every  spare  corner  of  the  building,  on  three 
different  floors.  They  had  to  be  trained  hurriedly. 
Indeed,  so  rapidly  were  they  hired,  that  little  care  could 
be  taken  in  selecting  them.  Now  the  work  proceeds  in 
an  orderly  manner,  without  rush.  It  is  handled  by 
employees  who  are  thoroughly  trained  to  do  their  work 
in  the  best  and  quickest  way. 

The  first  step  was  to  try  hiring  trained  letter  writers. 
That  proved  a  failure.  We  discovered,  no  one  who 
appeared  able  to  adapt  himself  to  our  quite  unu-sfual 
conditions.  We  then  called  upon  the  employment 
department  for  intelligent  clerks.  Some  of  the  appli- 
cants we  accepted  had  only  grammar  school  educations. 
Others  were  high  school  graduates.  None  had  done 
similar  work.  We  instructed  these  clerks  to  read  the 
correspondence  and  sort  all  letters,  for  a  perod  of  several 
weeks,  into  a  dozen  or  so  broad  classes.  We  then  exam- 
ined this  work  thoroughly  and  prepared  a  set  of  form 
letters  and  form  paragraphs  to  cover  the  classes  selected. 
By  means  of  these  letters  and  paragraphs  the  readers 
were  able  to  answer  whole  batches  of  letters  by  simply 
jotting  down  on  each  one  the  numbers  of  the  appropriate 
form  letter  or  series  of  paragraphs.  The  paragraphs  were 
built  up  along  lines  similar  to  those  described  in  ' '  The 
Automatic  Letter  Writer." 

This  was  the  first  important  step.  We  had  to  be 
sure  we  were  right  in  every  detail,  however,  and  as  we 
went  along  we  thought  it  best  to  hold  frequent  consul- 
tations. Every  little  point  was  thoroughly  thrashed  out 
and  settled  then  and  there  just  as  soon  as  it  came  to 
our  attention.  In  these  consultations  we  often  took  up 
questions  similar  to  these: 


The  results 
obtained 


Using  un- 
trained corre- 
spondents 


How  the  letters 
were    answered 


213 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


House  policies 
are  easily 
adhered  to 


What  happened 
to  the  letters 


When  you  must 
refer  to  records 


''What  shall  we  say  to  a  customer  who  says  so  and 
so?  What  shall  we  do  if  a  customer  does  such  and  such 
a  thing?  What  attitude  are  we  going  to  take  when  the 
customer  .  .  .?"  Whenever  we  came  to  a  decision,  we 
recorded  it,  made  it  "the  policy  of  the  house,"  and  gave 
it  a  place  in  our  "policy  book."  Each  correspondent 
and  reader  was  required  to  study  these  pohcies  and  to 
act  accordingly.  They  learned  their  lessons  thoroughly. 
In  fact,  the  manager,  who  relied  upon  his  judgment  and 
memory,  was  occasionally  criticised  by  correspondents 
for  giving  orders  contrary  to  the  "policy  book's"  ruhngs. 
If  the  manager  felt  that  the  policy  questioned  was  wrong, 
he  could  follow  only  one  course — take  up  the  problem 
with  our  executive  board.  He  could  not  under  any  cir- 
cumstances instruct  the  correspondent  to  act  contrary  to 
the  "policy  book's"  rulings. 

These  policies  were,  of  course,  general  in  their  nature 
and  left  room  for  a  certain  amount  of  individual  judg- 
ment. But  they  had  the  effect  of  harmonizing  and 
unifying  all  our  correspondence.  It  will  be  interesting 
to  tell  exactly  how  we  arranged  to  have  the  letters  read 
and  answered.  After  passing  through  the  mail-opening 
department,  they  are  delivered  to  the  correspondents — 
or  readers,  as  we  call  them — in  folders,  which  contain 
just  25  letters  each.  The  correspondents  read  every 
letter  carefully.  Two  thirds  of  the  letters,  we  find,  can 
be  answered  at  once.  These  are  handled  whenever 
possible — and  it  is  possible  in  90%  of  the  cases,  we  find — 
by  either  standard  form  letters  or  form  paragraphs.  The 
paragraph  system  we  use  will  be  described  in  greater 
detail  later.  When  it  is  necessary  to  consult  records 
before  answering,  the  reader  fills  out  a  printed  form, 
noting  thereon  the  data  desired,  as  well  as  any  other 
information  pertinent  to  the  inquiry.  This  form  is 
arranged  in  such  a  way  that  very  little  writing  by  the 
correspondent  is  necessary. 

The  letter  next  is  sent  to  the  proper  department  for 
the  desired  information.  This  department  looks  up  the 
information,  writes  it  in  on  the  "remarks"  space,  and 
the  letter  is  then  returned  to  the  correspondence  depart- 
ment for  further  attention.  The  reader  next  marks  in 
the  numbers  of  the  suitable  paragraphs  and  the  letter 
goes  to  the  typing  department,  where  it  is  typewritten. 
The  very  fact  that  correspondence,  at  the  time  the  reor- 


214 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


ganization  began,  was  coming  in  faster  than  it  could  be  Suppose  a  new 
handled,  directed  special  attention  to  reheving  this  paragraph  is 
congestion  with  form  paragraphs  and  form  letters,  needed 
Whenever  a  letter  is  not  covered  by  existing  paragraphs 
or  forms,  it  is  marked  ''special"  and  given  to  a  trained 
correspondent  to  answer.  If  he  finds  that  the  same 
question  is  repeated  by  10  different  persons,  even  over 
an  extended  period,  a  paragraph  is  written  to  cover  it. 
This  paragraph  is  sent  to  the  advertising  department, 
where  it  is  worked  over  with  as  much  care  as  though 
it  were  copy  for  an  advertisement  to  appear  in  a  maga- 
zine with  a  circulation  of  a  million.  It  is  then  given  a 
number,  a  master  copy  is  written  with  a  duplicator 
ribbon,  and  sufficient  copies  are  duplicated  upon  cards 
so  that  one  can  be  furnished  to  each  typist  and  corre- 
spondent. If  any  question  is  asked  more  than  10  times 
in  any  one  day,  a  form  letter  answering  it  is  made  out. 

These  form  paragraphs  and  letters  are  classified  and     Where  the  cus- 
numbered  according  to  subjects.     Great  care  is  taken  to     tomer's  mood 
make  each  paragraph  complete,  and  to  have  it  deal  with     must  he  con- 
one   subject   only.     All   the   reasonable   variations   are     sidered 
given  careful  consideration,  and  paragraphs  are  written 
to  cover  them. 

Attention  is  paid,  also,  to  the  different  moods  ex- 
pressed by  customers.  All  complaints,  for  example,  are 
handled  in  a  uniformly  courteous  manner,  no  matter 
how  provoking  the  customer  may  be.  If,  as  occasionally 
happens,  a  certain  paragraph  only  partially  answers  the 
customer,  the  reader  jots  down  an  extra  sentence  to  make 
it  fit  exactly.  This  goes  on  a  slip  of  paper,  and  the 
reader  adds  instructions  directing  the  typist  to  include 
the  extra  sentence  in  the  proper  paragraph.  As  it  stands, 
this  system  of  ours  contains  over  500  separate  paragraphs 
and  100  form  letters. 

The  paragraphs — as  stated — are  carefully  indexed  by  jr^^  index 
subjects.  The  correspondents,  however,  soon  learn  the 
most  important  ones,  so  they  find  it  unnecessary  to 
consult  the  index  for  each  letter.  Quite  often,  in  fact, 
you  will  hear  our  correspondents  saying  something  like 
this  to  each  other: 

"What  do  you  do  when  a  customer  says  he  will  not 
pay  his  account  unless  we  agree  to  send  him  certain  free 
supplies?" 

"Oh,  I  give  him  K16,  A24  and  K36." 


215 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Bringing  out 
the  paragraph's 
strong  points 


Why  para- 
graphs have  the 
personal  touch 


Making  a  game 
out  of  the  work 


"Is  that  so?    Why  don't  you  give  him  B18,  K36?" 

"Because  policy  number  32  says ,"  and  so  on. 

When  you  look  up  the  fine  points  involved  in  a  con- 
versation like  this,  you  usually  find  that  there  is  some 
delicate  difference  between  the  paragraphs  mentioned. 
No  harm  would  have  resulted,  probably,  if  either  course 
had  been  taken.  But  it  shows  the  remarkable  fitness  of 
each  paragraph  for  the  work  intended,  and  the  intel- 
ligence with  which  they  are  used. 

On  one  occasion,  an  executive  of  the  company  dis- 
covered in  the  files  a  letter  which  pleased  him  greatly. 
"Who  wrote  this  letter?"  he  asked  the  head  of  the 
department.  "It  is  a  gem.  You  ought  to  encourage 
that  dictator,  for  the  letter  certainly  shows  ability." 
On  investigation,  we  found  that  the  letter  consisted  of 
paragraphs  only  which  have  been  written  at  various 
times.  Even  the  executive  had  supposed  it  was  a 
personally  dictated  letter. 

It  seems  probable  that  the  letters  written  by  this 
paragraph  system  are  superior  to  the  average,  specially 
dictated,  personal  letter.  The  reason  for  that  is  simple. 
More  care  has  been  devoted  to  writing  the  paragraphs, 
and  phrasing  them  in  precisely  the  right  way,  than  could 
ordinarily  be  given  to  the  work  by  a  dictator,  even  under 
the  most  advantageous  circumstances.  Hours,  in  fact, 
have  been  given  to  the  preparation  of  some  of  the  form 
paragraphs,  and  before  being  finally  adopted,  they  have 
often  been  written  and  rewritten  time  and  time  again 
until  they  were  really  satisfactory. 

In  "dictating"  letters  under  our  paragraph  system, 
high  school  girls  have  been  able  to  handle  as  many  as 
50  or  60  of  them  an  hour.  The  greatest  amount  of  time 
goes  to  reading  the  customers'  letters.  From  the  average 
dictator  who  personally  formulates  each  reply,  it  is  hard 
to  get  150  letters  a  day.  Members  of  our  correspondence 
department  show  great  interest  and  enthusiasm.  They 
worked  splendidly  when  letters  were  coming  in  faster 
than  they  could  be  answered.  An  interesting  game  was 
then  made  of  the  work,  and  all  took  part.  A  large 
bulletin  was  placed  on  the  wall  in  full  view  of  the  whole 
department.  This  was  ruled  oM  into  a  large  number  of 
squares.  I  have  already  explained  that  letters  are 
given  to  the  readers  in  batches  of  25  in  folders.  So  we 
wrote  in  the  squares  on  the  bulletin  the  figures  "25" 


216 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


as  many  times  as  there  were  folders  of  unanswered  letters.     When  you're 
When  a  folder  was  handled  and  turned  in,  we  canceled     swamped  with 
one   "25."    As  rapidly  as  new  letters  arrived,   more     letters 
"25s"  were  placed  in  the  blank  spaces.    The  readers 
struggled  with  the  stream  of  letters  with  energy  and 
determination.    They  did  not  seem  to  consider  their 
task  hard  work,  but  rather  a  sport. 

During  this  strenuous  period  we  held  a  daily  dis- 
cussion class  for  the  readers.  This  class  dealt  with 
problems  coming  up  in  the  correspondence.  Various 
methods  of  handhng  typical  cases  were  discussed  and 
standardized.  New  paragraphs  were  suggested.  Mis- 
understandings were  uncovered  and  corrected.  These 
discussions  kept  the  whole  force  working  harmoniously. 
We  also  hold  a  weekly  class  for  correspondents.  This 
class  meets  Tuesday  evenings,  the  company  providing 
supper.  It  takes  up  the  general  subject  of  writing. 
We  beUeve  that  greater  progress  can  be  made  by  not 
confining  these  lessons  to  writing  letters  for  the  firm — 
for  then  the  papers  might  be  judged  solely  on  their  It  often  helps 
relationship  to  the  company's  problems — but  by  making  to  do  this 
them  cover  the  field  of  writing  in  general.  We  have, 
for  example,  considered  the  short  story  as  a  model. 
The  ideal  we  aim  at  is  to  have  the  tone  of  our  letters 
as  much  as  possible  like  one  person  talking  with  another — 
not  stilted.  To  emphasize  this,  frequent  exercises  are 
given.  We  act  out  some  incident  in  the  class,  have  it 
reported  verbatim,  and  afterwards  rewritten  by  the 
class.  We  never  permit  anything  to  be  written  in  a 
letter  that  would  not  sound  natural  and  fit  if  spoken. 
This  class  has  developed  some  remarkable  talent.  One 
girl,  only  17  years  old,  showed  much  abihty.  This  girl's  This  "corre- 
talent  would  probably  never  have  been  discovered  in  spondenV  a 
the  ordinary  routine  of  a  business  office.  She  was  shy  typist 
and  retiring.  She  came  to  the  company  as  a  typist, 
and  proved  a  failure  at  that.  We  tried  her  at  various 
other  jobs,  but  she  did  not  make  a  startling  success. 
Finally,  she  attended  the  class  of  her  own  accord,  and 
submitted  some  essays  that  were  quite  remarkable. 
She  has  become  a  valuable  employee,  and  has  increased 
her  earning  power  because  the  opportunity  was  given 
her  to  show  what  she  could  accomplish. 

It  might  seem  that  this  plan  places  the  business  of 
the  company  in  the  hands  of  inexperienced  clerks.     How 


217 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  helps  you 
to  keep  in  touch 


Keeping  track 
of  complaints 


How  the  typing 
output  was 
tripled 


can  the  management  watch  all  the  details?  Of  com-se, 
it  is  impossible  for  any  one  person  to  read  carefully,  in 
a  week,  one  day's  mail.  This  problem  of  control  has 
been  solved  with  om*  complaint  record.  A  sample  of 
the  form  we  use  is  shown  in  Figure  22.  The  headings 
are  as  follows : 

Manufacturing  faults 
Technical  faults 
Accoimting  and  recording 
Loss  of  money  or  goods 
Errors  in  packing  and  shipping 
New  wants  of  customers 
Correspondence  errors 

Each  correspondent  has  on  her  desk  one  of  the  sheets 
illustrated,  and  each  type  of  complaint — as  you  will 
notice — ^has  a  number.  As  the  letters  are  read,  every 
complaint  that  comes  to  the  correspondent's  notice  is 
recorded  by  simply  scoring  a  taUymark,  as  boys  score 
runs  in  a  baseball  game.  At  the  end  of  the  week,  these 
sheets  are  gathered,  totaled,  and  a  graphic  record  is 
given  to  the  general  manager  (Figure  23).  The  record 
for  four  weeks  is  shown  on  each  graphic  sheet.  This 
enables  the  busy  manager  not  only  to  get  a  digest  of  the 
various  complaints  weekly,  but  to  compare  them  with 
previous  weeks  and  grasp  the  situation  at  a  glance. 
The  record  is  an  effective  means  of  control. 

When  we  began  to  train  our  tjrpists,  their  output  was 
far  from  satisfactory,  although  they  were  apparently 
industrious  enough.  From  the  beginning  they  had 
always  been  treated  fairly  and  no  petty  restrictions 
placed  upon  them.  As  a  consequence,  there  was  httle 
tendency  on  the  part  of  any  of  them  to  ''stall."  How- 
ever, in  spite  of  their  apparent  industry,  the  output  of 
the  department  was  far  less  than  we  beUeved  possible. 
After  certain  alterations,  which  I  shall  describe  in  detail, 
the  average  output  was  just  about  tripled.  This,  I 
am  confident,  is  a  result  that  can  be  obtained — at  least  in 
part — in  many  concerns  where  similar  methods  are  used. 

We  started  first  of  all  to  improve  the  physical  arrange- 
ment of  the  office.  Desks  were  crowded  closely  together 
in  rows  of  four.  Each  time  a  typist  found  it  necessary  to 
leave  her  desk,  she  disturbed  possibly  three  other  workers 
in  the  same  row.     This  condition  we  remedied  by  placing 


218 


RECORD  OF  COMPLASNTS  HANDLED  BY 

/YiojCt^Wjcx^   ljU<Ltcry\^                  Wftfik  Bfininnina 

^  /an 

'f/r 

/          /               1 

No. 

Monday 

Tuesday 

Wednesday 

Thursday 

Friday 

Saturday 

TOTAL 

50 

-f-H-f-      II 

H 

III 

/ 

nil 

/ 

IR 

1 

yi-H-yf-M- 

III 

mi 

// 

rf^-L. 

H 

^7 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

60 

1 

/ 

1 

/ 

f 

L   1 

__^_,^ 

- 





U 

■ — 

-^ 



■ 

' 

9 

100 

FIGURE  22:  Here's  a  form  that  helps  the 
management  watch  details.  The  numbers  in 
the  first  column  refer  to  standardized  com- 
plaints.    When  a  complaint  comes  in,  it  is 


classified  under  the  proper  number  and  a  tally- 
mark  placed  opposite  that  number.  The  totals 
are  pictured  from  time  to  time  on  a  graphic 
record  like  the  one  which  is  shown  below. 


10 


Graphic  Record  of  Complaints  by  Weeks. 

20  30  40  50 


60 


70 


1  igar.  t^-:r,,  ar^"^. 

T                                                                               : 

rT:?s^gpBei. _      _      _      . 

*■■■■■■■■■■ C ^- 

'yl'py'y'"'""^'"""- : 

BBbi 

^^^^ 

^L 

^1 

1 __ __     

51 


52 


53 


FIGURE  23:  It's  easy  for  the  manager  to 
follow  complaints  when  a  graphic  record  like 
this  is  placed  before  him  each  week.  He  can 
see  at  a  glance  which  complaints  are  the  most 


frequent  and  which  departments  are  concerned. 
It  is  also  much  easier  to  watch  '  'symptomatic 
details,"  and  when  conditions  warrant  action 
to  apply  the  proper  remedy  more  intelligently. 


?19 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Assigning  the        the  desks  in  rows  of  two,  with  an  aisle  on  each  side. 
work  fairly  Thus,  when  it  was  necessary  for  one  of  the  girls  to  leave 

her  seat,  no  one  was  disturbed.  The  next  step  came  in 
assigning  the  work.  Formerly  it  was  placed  in  large 
boxes,  and  each  typist  helped  herself  as  she  required  it. 
This  resulted  in  some  girls  getting  too  much  and  others 
not  enough,  while  often  some  would  pick  ''easy"  work, 
to  the  disadvantage  of  others.  This  condition  we  reme- 
died by  having  the  department  manager  assign  the  work, 
giving  each  girl  just  enough  to  keep  her  busy  and  no  more. 
Stationery  also  proved  to  be  a  problem  calling  for  atten- 
tion. There  were  four  kinds  of  letterheads,  10  kinds  of 
envelops,  half  a  dozen  kinds  of  booklets  and  other  mis- 
cellaneous types  of  stationery.  Each  typist  had  a 
supply  of  every  kind.  This  material  she  kept  in  her 
desk.  Many  times  a  day  the  drawers  were  pulled  out. 
It  meant  a  lot  of  waste  motion. 
Where  do  you  We  remedied  this  condition  by  having  special  cabi- 

keep  your  nets  or  racks  made  which  held  not  only  a  small  quantity 

stationery?  of  the  necessary  stationery,  but  finished  and  unfinished 

work  as  well.  One  of  these  cabiuets  was  placed  on  each 
typist's  desk  within  easy  reach.  A  small  number  of 
letterheads — enough  for  an  hour  or  so — was  kept  under 
the  typewriter,  thus  avoiding  the  necessity  even  of 
extending  the  hand  so  short  a  distance  as  18  inches  to 
the  cabinet.  Often,  in  the  midst  of  her  work,  a  typist 
would  discover  a  shortage  of  a  certain  kind  of  stationery 
and  there  was  an  inevitable  delay  until  her  stock  was 
replenished.  This  we  remedied  by  making  it  the  duty 
of  the  inspector  to  keep  the  cabinet  suppUed  constantly. 
Formerly,  there  had  been  no  rehable  record  of  the  work 
A  check  on  done  by  any  one  operator.    The  correspondents  had  no 

the  typist  *  time  to  ascertain  the  quantity  of  work,  and  little  inclina- 
tion to  criticise  the  quaUty.  There  were  about  10 
different  kinds  of  typewriting  done  in  the  department 
and  although  it  was  known  that  there  was  such  and 
such  a  number  of  girls  working  in  the  department,  that 
there  was  so  much  work  of  various  kinds  done  and  to 
be  done,  it  was  not  known  just  how  much  of  each  kind 
of  work  Ruth  Davis  did,  nor  how  long  it  took  her  to  do  it. 
Certain  types  of  the  work  were  standardized,  therefore, 
and  an  inspector  was  detailed  to  examine,  correct,  and 
keep  careful  record  of  the  output  of  each  girl.  A  daily 
record  of  the  various  types  of  work  done  by  each  girl,  and 


220 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


Putting  the 
typists  on  their 
mettle 


the  length  of  time  it  took  her  to  do  it,  was  kept.    This     What  a  time 

record   showed   some   startling   results.    Those   getting     record  may 

the  highest  salaries  were  not  the  most  efficient,  and  some     show 

of  those  who  appeared  to  be  the  most  industrious  were 

not    the    speediest    operators.    We    experienced    some 

difficulty  at  first  in  getting  a  correct  time  record.    But 

we  finally  solved  the  problem  by  using  a  simple  time 

stamp,  and  giving  each  girl  a  time  card  for  each  batch 

of  work  of  a  certain  kind  that  was  given  her.    The  work 

was  stamped  with  the  beginning  and  the  finishing  time. 

We  arranged  careful  inspections  for  five  different  kinds 

of  errors,  classed  according  to  their  importance  as  follows: 

Class  1,  errors  in  addresses 
Class  2,  errors  in  context 
Class  3,  errors  in  spelhng 
Class  4,  errors  in  typing 
Class  5,  erasures 

Each  operator  was  shown  daily  her  record  of  work 
and  errors.  I  have  sketched  briefly  a  few  of  the  most 
important  details  of  the  plan  by  which  the  effectiveness 
of  the  department  as  a  whole  was  improved.  The  work 
was  not  all  finished  in  a  day,  and  was  accomplished  only 
by  constant  study  and  observation.  However,  with  this 
preliminary  work  done  we  were  in  a  position  to  improve 
the  individual  records  of  the  typists.  As  soon  as  we  had 
rehable  comparative  records,  showing  the  average  work 
accompHshed  every  hour  by  each  operator,  charts  of 
various  sorts  were  posted  on  the  bulletin  board  to  show 
the  progress  of  each  worker.  These  had  an  immediate 
effect  on  results. 

Careful  observation  for  waste  motion  resulted  in  a  Some  sources 
great  improvement.  For  example,  we  found  that  erasures  of  lost  time 
constituted  one  of  the  most  important  sources  of  lost 
time.  And  we  further  discovered  that  of  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  time  the  reason  for  erasures  was  that  the  girls 
were  working  in  spurts.  We  urged  them  to  write  slowly 
and  deUberately.  Whenever  this  advice  was  followed, 
there  was  an  immediate  increase  in  product.  The  im- 
portance of  the  point  was  brought  to  the  attention  of 
the  girls  in  about  this  way:  "Suppose  you  were  run- 
ning a  foot  race.  You  are  so  anxious  to  win  that  you 
run  at  the  highest  possible  speed.  You  run  so  fast  and 
so  recklessly  that  every  20  feet  you  trip  or  stumble. 


221 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  fault  is 
easily  corrected 


The  hare  or  Would  you  break  any  speed  records?    You  would  not. 

the  tortoise —         If  you  reached  the  goal  at  all,  you  would  be  so  exhausted 
which?  from  spurting,  and  lose  so  much  time  picking  yourself 

up,  that  you  would  hkely  be  the  last  to  arrive.  Sup- 
pose, on  the  contrary,  another  ran  carefully  and  de- 
liberately at  a  steady  pace  throughout  the  whole  race, 
without  once  stumbhng — who  would  win?" 

Each  operator  was  taught  that  there  was  only  one 
right  way  to  put  a  piece  of  paper  in  the  machine.  We 
showed  her  how  to  do  this  without  waste  of  time.  By 
time  studies  we  discovered  that  different  operators  took 
for  this  operation  all  the  way  from  three  hundredths  of 
a  minute  to  half  a  minute.  If  an  operator  took  half  a 
minute  to  adjust  the  letterhead  in  the  machine  and 
did  this  60  times  a  day,  that  operation  alone  would 
require  half  an  hour,  whereas  if  done  in  the  shortest 
possible  time  it  ought  to  occupy  not  more  than  0.03  x  60 
or  1.8  minutes,  leaving  28.2  minutes  more  in  which  to 
write  letters.  Another  reason  for  inefficiency  was  im- 
proper sitting  at  the  desk.  Some  girls  would  sit  on  the 
edge  of  their  chairs,  tipping  at  a  dangerous  angle  and 
twisting  their  feet  around  the  legs  of  the  chairs.  This 
is  not  an  exaggeration.  Many  such  cases  were  dis- 
covered. We  taught  them  that  it  would  pay  them  to  sit 
well  back  in  the  chairs,  with  the  feet  placed  squarely  on 
the  floor  and  head  and  shoulders  erect. 

One  inexperienced  operator,  we  observed,  turned  her 
head  to  read  her  copy  on  an  average  20  times  a  minute. 
10,000  useless  We  pointed  out  to  her  that  if  she  kept  up  that  record  for 
motions  saved  one  day,  consisting  of  8}/^  hours,  she  would  have  twisted 
her  neck  over  10,000  times.  We  suggested  that  she 
abandon  this  fatiguing  habit  and  learn  to  read  and 
remember  at  least  20  or  25  words  for  each  twist  of  the 
head.  Later,  this  observation  led  to  the  installation  of 
a  special  copy-holding  device  which  altogether  obviated 
the  turning  of  the  head.  All  chairs  and  desks  formerly 
were  the  same  height,  but,  unfortunately,  all  of  the 
operators  were  not.  So  we  furnished  cushions  to  those 
who  needed  to  be  elevated. 

After  eliminating  the  most  obvious  faults  of  the  indi- 
vidual operators,  we  made  preparations  to  estabhsh  a 
bonus  system.  We  did  not  undertake  to  do  this,  however, 
until  all  external  hindrances  had  been  removed  and  each 
operator  studied  and  her  faults  corrected  as  far  as  possible. 


222 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


Sound  management  does  not  set  a  merely  theoretical 
standard,  such  as  could  be  attained  by  none  but  the  most 
experienced  operators.  Once  a  standard  rate  has  been 
set  it  should  not  be  changed  unless  the  methods  are 
also  changed.  It  was  therefore  important  to  exercise 
great  care  in  setting  a  standard  which,  while  difficult  to 
attain,  should  not  be  impossible.  Had  we  taken  the 
observations  in  the  beginning  and  set  a  standard  then  it 
would  have  been  fair  neither  to  the  worker  nor  the  com- 
pany. What  we  did,  therefore,  was  to  take  a  large 
number  of  tests  on  a  standard  piece  of  copy.  These 
tests  were  taken  at  all  hours  of  the  day,  and  a  number 
of  tests  taken  on  different  days  for  each  girl.  Several 
weeks  were  required  for  completing  these  studies.  We 
then  made  studies  of  each  individual  motion — (1)  insert- 
ing the  paper  in  the  machine;  (2)  reading  and  copying 
address;  (3)  reading  and  typewriting  copy;  (4)  taking 
the  paper  out  of  the  machine  and  so  on. 

Next,  we  took  many  tests  on  miscellaneous  copy, 
and  the  results  were  averaged  with  the  first  tests. 
Finally,  half-hourly  tests  were  taken  during  the  whole 
day  on  a  number  of  the  operators.  All  of  the  operations 
which  were  repeated,  such  as  getting  paper,  inserting  it 
in  the  machine,  taking  it  out  of  the  machine,  and  so  on, 
were  taken  from  the  lowest  figures  in  the  time  studies. 
We  reasoned  that  all  could  be  taught  to  do  these  opera- 
tions in  the  most  effective  manner.  The  operation  of 
typewriting  copy  was  averaged,  after  eliminating  the 
records  of  those  who  were  hopelessly  slow.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  highest  averages  were  not  taken  here  as  a 
standard,  but  lumped  with  the  others.  We  found  that 
250  square  inches  per  hour  was  a  theoretical  possibility 
with  the  operators  then  working.  A  deduction  of  20% 
was  made  for  unavoidable  delays,  and  a  standard  of  200 
square  inches  per  hour  set. 

It  is  one  thing  to  set  the  standard  and  quite  another 
thing  to  attain  it,  not  once,  but  steadily  every  day. 
Most  of  the  typists  were  beginners,  though  some  had 
several  years'  experience.  The  wages  ranged  from  $7 
to  $15  per  week.  We  fixed  a  standard  wage  of  $9.50 
for  convenience  in  figuring  the  bonus.  This  standard 
did  not  change  the  regular  wages  of  the  operators  in  any 
way.  If,  however,  a  girl  reached  the  standard  of  200 
square  inches  per  hour  for  the  length  of  time  she  was 


How  a  standard 
was  set 


Making  the 
tests 


A  standard 
wage  helps 


223 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


A  table  for 
figuring  bonus 


This  point 
should 
be  clearly 
understood 


working  upon  a  standardized  operation,  she  got  a  bonus 
of  10  cents  per  hoiu*.  If  she  worked  the  entire  week  of 
47J^  hours  at  standard  speed,  this  amounted  to  $4.75. 
She  got  th's  bonus,  whether  her  salary  was  $7  or  $15. 
The  bonus  was  paid  on  a  sHding  scale,  as  follows: 


Square  inches 
per  hour 
138 
140 
142 
144 
146 
148 
150 
152 
154 
156 
158 
160 
162 
164 
166 
168 
170 


Bonus 
per  hour 
$0.0028 
.0040 
.0056 
.0068 
.0088 
.0104 
.0120 
.0132 
.0148 
.0160 
.0176 
.0200 
.0208 
.0224 
.0240 
.0260 
.0280 


Square  inches 
per  hour 
172 
174 
176 
178 
180 
182 
184 
186 
188 
190 
192 
194 
196 
198 
200 
220 
240 


Bonus 
per  hour 
$0.0300 
.0320 
.0340 
.0360 
.0400 
.0440 
.0480 
.0520 
.0560 
.0600 
.0640 
.0680 
.0720 
.0760 
.1000 
.1400 
.1800 


It  was  understood  that  no  operator  would  lose  her 
position  because  she  was  unable  to  reach  the  standard. 
The  only  penalty  would  be  no  bonus  money  in  the  pay 
envelop.  At  first,  none  of  the  girls  believed  it  was 
possible  to  attain  the  standard.  As  the  average  number 
of  square  inches  per  hour  when  the  records  were  first 
kept  was  80,  and  this  had  gradually  climbed  up  to  127, 
it  is  not  surprising  that  they  thought  the  standard  too 
high.  For  several  weeks  no  one  earned  any  bonus, 
though  considerable  effort  was  put  forth.  Then  we 
made  rest  and  fatigue  studies.  One  of  the  best  and 
most  faithful  workers  was  selected  for  these  studies. 
Records  were  taken  by  half-hour  periods.  The  operator 
was  first  kept  at  work  at  a  high  speed  during  the  entire 
day.  Then  she  was  given  five  minutes  rest  every  hour, 
and  every  other  hour  a  rest  of  10  minutes.  The  results 
proved  conclusively  that  four  hours  is  too  long  a  period 
to  expect  a  typist  to  remain  at  the  machine  and  do  rapid 
and  good  work. 


224 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


Recess  periods  were  therefore  established  as  follows: 
one  10-minute  recess  in  the  morning  at  10:30  and  another 
in  the  afternoon  at  3:30.  During  these  recess  periods 
the  windows  were  thrown  open  and  all  employees  en- 
couraged to  go  outside  and  play.  Later  on,  employees 
were  allowed  five  minutes  before  recess  and  five  minutes 
after  recess,  both  in  the  morning  and  afternoon,  this 
time  to  be  taken  at  their  own  convenience.  Thus  em- 
ployees now  have  40  minutes  of  rest  a  day  in  a  working 
day  of  83^  hours.  That  this  pays  the  company  is 
evident.  However,  although  the  bonus  plan  had  been  in 
operation  for  several  weeks,  and  although  the  output 
had  increased  considerably,  no  one  succeeded  in  reaching 
the  standard.  The  girls  all  insisted  that  the  standard 
was  altogether  too  high. 

At  about  this  time  one  of  the  girls  who  had  been 
below  the  average  in  speed  was  ofifered  a  prize  of  one 
dollar  for  the  first  hour  she  reached  the  standard.  The 
very  next  day  she  came  down  to  work  determined  to  win 
that  dollar.  After  several  hours  spent  in  the  attempt,  she 
won  the  prize.  That  broke  the  ice.  It  was  possible, 
after  all.  The  same  prize  was  offered  to  all  the  girls  in 
the  department  and  thereafter,  day  after  day,  one  after 
another  won  it  until  finally  reaching  the  standard 
became  a  habit.  It  is  a  prevalent  idea  that  one  cannot 
work  rapidly  and  accurately.  The  reverse  is  proved  by 
all  of  our  experience.  In  order  to  do  rapid  work,  one 
must  do  careful  and  accurate  work.  It  is  a  fact  that 
almost  amounts  to  a  law.  From  the  beginning,  our 
employees  were  penalized  heavily  for  errors.  In  type- 
writing, as  in  many  other  lines  of  work,  it  has  been 
proved  that  in  order  to  do  rapid  work  one  must  con- 
centrate. And  this  in  itself  decreases  to  a  great  extent 
the  chance  of  error. 

The  very  first  attempt  at  increased  speed,  indeed, 
usually  means  an  increase  in  errors,  simply  because  the 
operator  is  straining  herself  to  make  a  record.  She  is 
just  a  httle  bit  doubtful  as  to  whether  or  not  she  can 
attain  the  standard.  But  as  she  gains  confidence,  the 
errors  gradually  diminish  until  finally  she  has  a  much 
lower  record  of  errors  at  the  high  speed  than  she  had  at 
the  low  speed.  This  statement  is  made  only  after  care- 
fully tabulating  and  charting  thousands  of  observations. 
In  this  connection,  it  is  perhaps  well  to  emphasize  the 


Recesses  paid 
this  company 
well 


Stimulating 
the  slow  worker 


Will  speed 

sacrifice 

accuracy? 


22^ 


IMamfi             Miss  Calver                                 Mnnth        Saptember  1915 
Stanrtflrrl          200  square  inches        p(,r  hnur     nRpartmfitit                    Typing                       Opfirafion         Letters 

300 

KEY 

Operator's  Average 

Department  Average  •— .— •  250 

Errors,  Class  1  — __— ._ 

Department  Average 

,.,       .                        200 
Errors,  Class  5..—. 

Remarks:               150 

Class  1  errors  are  errors 





-A 

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in  address  (the  number  per 
10,000  square  inches   is 

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1 — 

1 

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Class  5  errors  are  erasures 
(per  1,000  square   inches) 

if —  at  other  work                   50 

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FIGURE  24:  A  monthly  record  like  this  is 
kept  of  the  output  of  each  typist  showing 
graphically  her  progress  from  day  to  day.  It 
is  interesting  to  note  how  this  particular  girl's 


record  for  September — shown  above — con- 
trasts with  her  record  for  January,  four  months 
later — shown  in  the  chart  below.  The  record 
is  obviously  as  worth  while  as  it  is  easy  to  keep. 


Stanriarri         200  square  inches 

npr 

hour 

Name             Miss 
Deoartment 

Calve 
Typ 

r 

ing 

— 

— 

.Month 

Ooeration 

January  1916 
Letters 

300 

KEY 

Department  Average-, _,»  250 

Errors,  Class  1 . , 

Department  Average— . 

Errors,  Class  5 ^°° 

1 

1 



1 







1 

1 













k 

— 

■Z3 



:=: 

— 

1 ■ 

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= 

__ 

pz: 

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, — 



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— 





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L 

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— , 

tj\ 

^ 

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^i 





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1 , 

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Remarks:               ^50 

Class  1  errors  are  errors 

— 

— ~ 

♦V 

^ — z. 

^ 

' 

' 

— 

"•" 

1 1 

^T 



■y — 

— ' 

— 

A 

^r 

— 

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— 

in  address (the  number  per 
10,000  square  inches   is 



, 





1 



, 



. 

, 



1 1 



Shown.)                                           '"" 
Class  5  errors  are  erasures 

1 

— 1 

[■■     1 

—— 

■■  ' 

— — 

— 

— ^ 

' 

^^— 

^— 

— 

——J 

"— - 

, 

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, 







, 



, 

(per  1.000  square   inches) 
j( —  at  other  work                50 
A  —  absent 

1 

— 1 

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°                                                                                                                                                                         1 

FIGURE  25:  As  an  incentive  to  the  girls  to 
do  good  work,  the  management  promises  to 
give  cards  like  this  in  place  of  letters  of  recom- 
mendation, if  they  wish  to  leave  the  company. 


Besides  illustrating  one  girl's  progress,  the 
card  shows  that  errors  do  not  increase  propor- 
tionately with  increased  speed.  Fastest  workers 
are  usually  the  most  accurate,  it's  been  found. 


226 


THE  COMPLETED  ROUTINE 


No  need  for 
office  discipline 
here 


importance  of  confidence.     It  is  important  at  all  times     Do  you  get 
that  the  worker  be  encouraged  and  coached,   exactly     maximum 
as  is  an  athlete.     An  employee  must  never  be  scolded     results? 
for  not  reaching  the  standard,  nor  accused  of  ''stalling." 

A  word  might  be  said  about  office  discipline.  We 
have  but  little  use  for  that  word  now.  Another  word — 
cooperation — has  more  effect  with  us.  Each  worker  is 
permitted  to  choose  her  own  code  of  ethics.  The  result 
of  not  attending  to  business — gossiping,  ''stalling," 
being  tardy,  absent,  or  doing  any  or  all  of  the  hundred  and 
one  other  little  things  that  often  lower  output  in  offices — 
is  simply  less  bonus.  That  is  punishment  enough.  Em- 
ployees in  our  office  are  constantly  seeking  work — not 
an  opportunity  to  get  out  of  it.  During  the  recess  their 
natural  desire  to  talk,  laugh,  and  play  is  satisfied — the 
rest  of  the  time  work  is  the  order  of  the  day.  By  these 
methods  the  effectiveness  of  the  entire  typist  depart- 
ment has  been  brought  up  from  an  average  of  80  square 
inches  per  hour  to  nearly  200  square  inches;  and  on 
several  occasions  the  output  has  run  over  that  figure. 
The  average  of  some  of  the  girls  for  an  entire  week 
has  exceeded  230  square  inches.  One  operator  has 
reached  an  average  of  278  square  inches  for  one  day. 

I  have  confined  my  remarks  to  the  typing  of  letters, 
but  we  handle  several  different  kinds  of  work.  The 
standard  for  typewriting  envelops  from  handwritten 
copy  is  200  an  hour.  The  standard  for  typewriting 
envelops  from  typewritten  copy  is  240  an  hour.  The  same 
bonus  rate  and  standard  wage  apphes  on  all  standardized  A  graphic 
operations  in  the  department.  A  careful  daily  record  is  record  of  work 
kept  of  the  work  of  each  employee,  showing  the  amount 
done,  the  number  of  errors,  attendance,  tardiness,  and 
so  on.  This  information  is  daily  charted  upon  a  card  by 
months,  as  shown  in  Figures  24  and  25  and  becomes  a 
graphic  record  of  the  employee's  work  during  the  entire 
period  of  her  employment. 

Recently  the  management  has  announced  to  the 
employees  that  if  at  any  time  they  find  it  to  their  advan- 
tage to  leave  the  employ  of  the  company,  they  will  be 
given  a  copy  of  their  graph  cards  for  use  in  securing 
another  position.  It  can  readily  be  seen  what  valuable 
recommendations  some  of  the  cards  will  be.  Even  more 
interesting,  perhaps,  is  the  confidence  thus  shown  by 
the  company  in  its  ability  to  hold  its  employees. 


227 


CHAPTER  XIII 

MECHANICAL  DEVICES  THAT  SPEED  UP 
AUTOMATIC  DICTATION 


Advantages 
gained   through 
prepared  para- 
graphs 


How  to  keep 
form  para- 
graphs flexible 


Prepared  paragraphs  are  coming  so  rapidly  into 
more  general  use  in  the  handling  of  business  correspond- 
ence that  several  users  of  ''The  Automatic  Letter  Writer" 
have  combined  its  contents  with  mechanical  appliances, 
the  combination  resulting  in  a  simple  and  easily  workable 
system  for  handling  correspondence. 

These  paragraphs,  used  properly,  are  certain  to  be 
productive  of  better  results  than  when  the  same  points 
must  be  dictated  again  and  again.  The  strength  of 
statements  which  must  be  stated  at  frequent  intervals 
from  memory  must  necessarily  depend  upon  the  mental 
condition  of  the  dictator  at  each  repetition.  But  with 
prepared  paragraphs  the  facts  are  always  stated  in  their 
most  forceful  way. 

In  order  to  make  the  use  of  paragraph  systems  easy 
for  both  correspondents  and  typists  one  card  system 
company  has  designed  some  useful  equipment  for  handling 
paragraphs.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  cards  in  this 
equipment  swing  in  a  vertical  position  like  the  leaves  of 
a  book.  This  has  proved  to  be  a  natural  and  easy  way 
to  use  paragraph  cards  (Figure  26). 

Each  card  is  mounted  individually  and  can  be  removed 
without  disturbing  any  of  the  others.  This  is  a  conveni- 
ence because  at  times  paragraphs  must  be  revised  or 
replaced  and  the  ease  with  which  this  can  be  done  with 
this  equipment  facilitates  keeping  the  system  up  to  date. 
Then,  too,  frequently  temporary  conditions  come  up  that 
make  it  desirable  to  insert  for  a  time  additions  to  an 
existing  paragraph  or  to  introduce  a  supplementary 
paragraph.  For  instance,  where  a  stock  of  goods  is 
exhausted  and  it  is  desirable  to  make  some  explanation 
to  the  customer,  or  where  a  substitute  is  being  used 


228 


FIGURE  26:  The  typist  finds  especially  con- 
venient this  simple  method  for  handling  form 
paragraphs.  The  cards  are  arranged  like  the 
leaves   of  a   book  and   each   one   is   mounted 


separately  so  that  any  can  be  removed  withou*: 
the  slightest  danger  of  disturbing  the  others. 
This  arrangement  of  course  helps  to  a  very 
great  extent  to  keep  the  paragraphs  up  to  date. 


FIGURE  27:  A  stand  like  this  placed  on  the 
typist's  desk  is  easily  referred  to.  As  with 
the  method  shown  above,  probably  one  of  its 
greatest   advantages   is   the   ease   with   which 


changes  can  be  made.  New  numbers  can  be 
added  as  new  paragraphs  are  needed,  and  old 
paragraphs  can  be  readily  and  quicklj-  removed. 
It    takes   up   very   little  space  on   the   desk. 


229 


FIGURE  28:  One  executive  was  not  satis- 
fied with  the  method  of  handhng  form  para- 
graphs, so  he  set  to  work  and  designed  his 
own.     The  device  shown  here  is  the  one  he 


hit  upon  for  the  use  of  his  correspondents.  It 
also  serves  as  an  index,  and  they  find  it  mighty 
helpful.  How  the  correspondents  use  it  is 
described  in  more  detail  on  the  opposite  page. 


FIGURE  29:  This  is  the  device  which  the 
same  executive  designed  for  the  use  of  his 
typists.  The  case  containing  the  cards  opens 
in   two    places.      The    cards   are    arranged   so 


that  the  index  numbers  are  at  all  times  plainly 
visible.  Both  typists  and  correspondents  find 
that  this  particular  arrangement  of  case  and 
cards  simplifies  their  work  to  a  large  extent. 


230 


SPEEDING  UP  DICTATION 


temporarily  and  the  reason  for  its  use  must  be  told,  with 
this  equipment  an  auxiliary  card  can  be  inserted  instantly 
next  to  the  paragraph  to  which  it  is  related. 

The  stand  on  which  the  paragraph  equipment  is 
mounted  can  be  placed  at  whatever  angle  is  desired  by 
the  correspondent  or  typist  in  order  to  make  it  easy  to 
read  the  copy  quickly. 

The  chief  requisites  of  an  effective  dictation  system 
are  a  convenient  index  of  paragraphs  and  letters,  and 
some  method  whereby  the  forms  themselves  are  quickly 
accessible.  Several  other  devices  on  the  market  in  addi- 
tion to  the  one  already  described  also  are  designed  to 
offer  both  these  advantages. 

One  executive  had  equipment  specially  made  accord- 
ing to  his  own  ideas.  He  has  two  separate  devices — an 
upright  rack  for  holding  index  panels  for  use  by  corre- 
spondents, and  a  case  for  cards  which  is  used  by  the 
typists  on  which  the  form  paragraphs  cUpped  from  "The 
Automatic  Letter  Writer"  are  pasted. 

The  paragraphs  are  indexed  by  typing  on  a  narrow 
strip  of  paper  the  index  number  and  first  lines  of  para- 
graphs, and  inserting  the  strip  in  a  flattened  transparent 
tube.  This  tube  is  then  fixed  in  the  panel  as  is  shown  in 
Figure  28.  Different  colored  tubes  are  used  to  indicate 
various  classes  of  paragraphs.  For  example,  green 
represents  opening  paragraphs,  yellow  means  closers,  and 
plain  white  indicates  the  fillers. 

Paragraphs  are  arranged  in  the  panels  according  to 
subjects,  such  as  collections,  sales,  complaints,  and  so  on. 
It  is  evident  that  it  is  but  a  moment's  work,  therefore, 
to  locate  the  desired  forms  and  to  give  the  necessary 
instructions  to  the  typist. 

The  other  piece  of  equipment  in  the  office  where  this 
particular  system  was  examined,  is  the  case  containing 
the  cards.  Figure  29  shows  how  it  opens  in  two  places 
and  how  the  cards  are  held  in  position  so  that  each  index 
number  is  visible. 

Another  system  which  is  proving  satisfactory  to  many 
who  use  it,  combines  index  and  letters  in  one  piece  of 
equipment.  In  this  one,  the  paragraphs  are  mounted  on 
separate  cards  as  shown  in  Figure  27.  This  equipment, 
according  to  the  man  who  explained  its  use,  is  particularly 
convenient  for  the  typists  as  it  does  not  take  up  much 
room  and  is  easy  to  handle. 


Devices  that  aid 
the  correspond- 
ent 


The  right 
paragraphs 
quickly  found 


are 


This  file 
saves  time 


231 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


A  convenient  The  first  few  cards  he  uses  for  index  cards.     Each 

indi£,x  product  he  sells  has  its  own  group  of  paragraphs  and  its 

own  index  card.  Other  cards  hst  all  paragraphs  on  such 
subjects  as  agents,  collections,  and  so  on.  The  letters 
indexed  on  the  "agents"  card  are  also  found  on  the 
cards  of  letters  on  the  various  products.  This  cross  index 
is  simply  for  the  convenience  of  the  correspondent. 

The  executive  who  uses  the  first  of  these  two  systems 
reports  that  both  correspondents  and  typists  quickly 
memorize  the  paragraphs  and  after  a  few  weeks  they 
pay  no  further  attention  to  the  cards.  The  index  rack 
he  finds  useful  at  times,  as  a  correspondent  may  be  for 
a  moment  in  doubt  as  to  the  number  of  a  certain  para- 
graph, and  can  make  sure  by  referring  to  its  panels. 
Perhaps  you  Furthermore,  experience  has  shown  in  this  office  that 

can  use  this  typists  make  fewer  mistakes  when  typing  from  memory 

arrangement  than  they  do  when  working  direct  from  forms.     It  is 

also  the  executive's  opinion,  therefore,  that  in  comparatively 

small  offices,  or  offices  using  a  limited  number  of  form 
letters  and  paragraphs,  it  is  unwise  to  purchase  extremely 
expensive  equipment,  because  the  girls  quickly  memorize 
the  forms  and  no  longer  use  the  cards. 

Another  executive  who  uses  "  The  Automatic  Letter 
Writer"  has  worked  out  a  simple  and  inexpensive  equip- 
ment for  his  typists.  The  form  paragraphs  were  cUpped 
from  ''The  Automatic  Letter  Writer"  and  pasted  on  sheets 
of  cardboard  about  4  by  5  inches.  These  boards  are  bound 
by  rings  between  covers  of  pressed  board.  The  covers 
hold  the  book  solidly  if  the  typist  wants  to  stand  it 
upright,  or  are  equally  firm  if  she  prefers  to  place  it  on  a 
desk  and  prop  it  with  a  book.  Nearly  all  typists  prefer 
the  second  method,  and  the  executive  has  had  made  a 
number  of  simple  wire  standards  for  holding  the  book. 
This  idea  Yellow  sheets  with  no  paragraphs  mark  the  main 

might  be  divisions  of  the  forms,  and  the  subjects  appear  on  tabs — 

applied  in  orders,  complaints,  collections,  sales  and  so  on.     It  is 

other  ways  easy  to  open  the  book  to  the  desired  subject. 

Paragraphs  are  pasted  on  white  boards  and  arranged 
as  follows:  openers,  fillers,  and  closers.  The  principal 
headings — orders,  complaints  and  so  on — are  indexed 
A,  B,  C,  D,  E,  and  the  paragraphs  are  numbered  under 
these  letters  as  follows:  1  to  9,  openers;  10  to  39,  fillers; 
and  40  to  50  closers.  This  series  of  numbers  covers  the 
needs  of  that  particular  office. 


CHAPTER  XI 


WHAT  FORM  LETTERS  WILL  DO  FOR  YOU 


One  hundred  and  fifty  orders  were  secured  by  mail 
during  a  recent  form  letter  campaign  conducted  by  the 
manufacturer  of  an  installation  for  supplying  water  to 
homes  in  the  country.  His  product  is  naturally  a  rather 
costly  one.  These  orders  were  secured  entirely  by 
means  of  an  intelligent  use  of  testimonials  which  were 
signed  by  300  customers. 

This  is  the  story  of  how  he  did  it.  Since  he  tested  out 
the  sales  possibilities  of  testimonials  on  a  difficult  prop- 
osition, his  results  should  be  helpful  to  business  men  in 
every  line  who  may  be  interested  in  securing  effective 
automatic   correspondence. 

This  manufacturer  had  already  sold  about  300  outfits 
to  progressive  farmers,  but  he  found  that  further  orders 
were  coming  slowly.  His  canvass  was  conducted  entirely 
by  mail,  since  his  prospects  were  scattered  and  because 
dealers  hesitated  to  take  on  the  proposition  on  account 
of  the  high  price. 

It  was  up  to  him,  therefore,  to  use  a  direct  means  of 
interesting  more  farmers  in  his  water  supply  installation. 
His  search  for  a  thorough  and  economical  campaign 
resulted  so  successfully  that  he  nearly  doubled  sales  in 
his  own  territory  at  a  low  cost  and  used  what  was  left  of 
his  advertising  appropriation  to  open  up  a  very  profitable 
new  territory. 

The  entire  campaign,  as  already  suggested,  was  based 
on  form  letter  testimonials.  Pleased  users  are  usually 
the  best  sort  of  advertisement  for  any  article,  but  it 
requires  tact  to  use  their  expressions  of  satisfaction  in  a 
way  that  will  secure  additional  orders.  Displayed  too 
boldly,  they  may  only  defeat  their  purpose.  When  they 
are  used  in  the  right  way,  however,  they  succeed  in  add- 
ing a  personal  touch  to  the  canvass  that  is  often  un- 
usually effective. 


This  salesman 
draws  no  salary 


Making  use  of 
testimonials 


233 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Perhaps  a  con- 
test like  this 
will  help 


Arousing  his 
curiosity 


This  often 
brings  in  new 
names 


This  particular  manufacturer's  first  problem  was: 
How  am  I  to  get  the  testimonials?  Farmers,  as  a  rule,  are 
reluctant  to  give  testimonials ;  still,  he  devised  a  plan  that 
not  only  secured  testimonials,  but  in  addition  got  the 
names  of  more  than  a  thousand  hve  prospects. 

His  first  step  was  to  send  out  a  letter  like  that 
below  to  each  customer  who  had  already  purchased  an 
outfit.  The  cash  prize  of  $50  was  large  enough  to  interest 
the  farmers.  Then,  too,  the  letter  was  scheduled  so  that 
it  reached  them  during  the  early  winter,  when  there  was 
little  outside  work  to  distract  their  attention  and  when 
they  could  easily  take  a  few  hours  off  in  which  to  shape 
up  their  rephes  to  his  letter. 

Mr.    D.    F.    Jones 
Heatonville,   Mo. 

Dear  Sir: 

This  letter  will  tell  you  how  to  win  a  $50 
cash  prize. 

Be  sure  to  read  it  carefully. 

You  have  a  .   .   .  Water  Supply  System 
in  your  home,  bought  from  this  company 
some  time  ago.  You  have  used  it  long 
enough  to  be  thoroughly  satisfied  as  to  its 
advantages — or  disadvantages,  though  we 
have  never  yet  received  a  single  complaint. 

By  simply  telling  your  experience  with  the 

System  in  your  own  words;  your 
reasons  for  buying  it  instead  of  other 
makes;  why  you  can  recommend  the  system  to 
others — you  may  win  the  cash  prize  of  $50. 

You  have  to  comply  with  only  one  condition 
to  be  eligible  for  the  cash  prize.  You 
must  give  us  the  names  of  five  prominent 
farmers  in  your  locality,  whom  you  would 
like  to  have  act  as  judges  in  this  con- 
test. A  blank  for  sending  their  names  is 
enclosed  herewith. 

All  letters  must  reach  us  before  January  1, 
when  they  will  be  handed  to  our  printer  to 
be  published  in  an  attractive  booklet  for 


234 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


the  perusal  of  the  judges.   You  also  will 
receive  a  copy  of  this  booklet. 

Be  sure  to  mail  your  letter  without  delay. 
It  will  give  you  a  good  chance  to  earn  $50 
in  cash.  And  don't  forget  to  enclose  the 
blank  with  the  names  of  the  five  judges. 
It  is  important. 

Yours  truly. 

Almost  every  person  to  whom  this  letter  was  sent 
responded  with  a  testimonial — not  a  brief  letter  merely 
saying  that  the  system  was  satisfactory,  but  a  compre- 
hensive statement  telling  why  this  particular  water 
supply  system  gave  satisfaction,  why  it  was  to  be  pre- 
ferred over  others,  why  it  supplied  a  needed  convenience, 
and  similar  facts. 

E^very  testimonial,  of  course,  was  accompanied  by 
the  names  of  five  farmers  who  were  to  act  as  judges. 
When  the  final  count  was  made  on  January  1,  it  was 
found  that  240  testimonials  had  been  received,  and  with 
them  the  names  of  1,200  judges. 

The  manufacturer  immediately  sent  the  testimonials 
to  the  printer  to  be  pubhshed  in  an  attractive  little  book- 
let, which  had  this  title  on  the  cover:  "A  message  from 
the  satisfied  users  of  the  .  .  .  Water  System  to  those 
who  should  be  users."  A  few  pages  in  the  front  of  the 
booklet  related  the  circumstances  and  terms  of  the 
contest.  The  remaining  pages  were  given  over  wholly 
to  testimonials. 

A  few  days  in  advance  of  maihng  the  booklet,  a  letter 
was  written  to  the  judges  to  announce  its  coming  and  the 
reason  for  sending  it.  There  was  no  effort  at  any  sales 
appeal  to  the  judges,  outside  of  the  testimonials  them- 
selves. Almost  without  exception,  the  farmers  named 
were  pleased  to  act  as  judges.  This  is  the  letter  that  was 
sent  to  them  in  advance  of  the  booklet : 

One  of  your  neighbors,   who  is  competing 
for  a  $50  cash  prize,   has  asked  us  to  have 
you  act  as  judge  in  this  contest.      This 
shows  the  high  esteem  in  which  you  are 
held  by  your  neighbors. 

The  prize  of  $50  will  be  given  to  the 
writer  of  the  testimonial   that  is  selected 


Prizes  like  this 
sometimes  help 


What  a  con- 
vincing   booklet 
may  do 


How  to  build 
good  will 
indirectly 


235 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Could  850  have 
been  better 
invested? 


Does  your 
advertising 
reach  live 
'prospects? 


This  plan  tells 
how  it  was  done 


by  the  majority  of  judges  as  the  clear- 
est, most  comprehensive  and  interesting 
statement  of  the  writer's  experience  with 
the  .   .   .  Water  Supply  System. 

The  testimonials  are  being  printed  in  an 
attractive  little  booklet  which  will  be 
sent  to  you  in  a  few  days.  Each  letter  is 
numbered.  Just  put  down  the  number  of 
your  "Blue  Ribbon"  letter  in  the  blank 
furnished  for  this  purpose,  and  use  the 
stamped  envelop  for  returning  it.   Please 
have  your  answer  mailed  before  February  1. 

The  success  .of  this  contest  depends  upon 
your  cooperation,  and  we  trust  you  will  do 
us  the  favor  asked  in  the  preceding 
paragraph.  You  may  be  assured  that  we 
shall  try  to  return  it  some  day. 

Thank  you! 

The  result  of  having  these  likely  prospects  read 
testimonial  letters  from  240  enthusiastic  users  of  the 
water  supply  system  can  be  imagined.  They  did  not 
merely  skim  the  pages.  They  read  each  letter  carefully 
in  order  to  be  sure  to  select  the  most  deserving  can- 
didate for  the  S50  prize. 

The  letters  were  splendid  testimonials.  Some  of  them 
mentioned  advantages  resulting  from  the  system  that 
the  manufacturer  himself  had  never  known  about.  In 
fact,  he  secured  more  valuable  talking  points  from  this 
contest  than  he  could  probably  have  secured  in  any  other 
way.  In  the  booklet  itself,  each  testimonial  was  num- 
bered. Everything  possible  was  done  to  make  it  easy 
for  the  judges  to  indicate  their  preferences.  A  blank 
was  furnished  for  this  purpose  and  also  a  stamped  envelop. 

When  all  the  judges'  letters  were  in,  a  summary  was 
made.  The  prize  of  S50,  of  course,  went  to  the  writer  of 
the  letter  receiving  the  largest  number  of  votes.  A  letter 
was  then  sent  to  the  judges.  It  named  the  prize  winner 
and  thanked  them  for  going  over  the  letters  carefully. 

Up  to  this  point,  the  manufacturer's  chief  aim  had 
been  to  center  the  interest  of  the  judges  on  the  contest 
and  the  prize.  Nothing  had  been  said  to  them  directly 
about  their  buying  the  system.     Their  minds,  however, 


236 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


were  by  this  time  colored  by  an  appreciation  of  its 
advantages,  for  they  had  read  the  enthusiastic  testi- 
monials of  240  satisfied  users. 

So  now,  after  the  contest  had  come  to  a  close,  and 
the  judges  had  again  read  over  the  prize-winning  letter, 
they  were  naturally  in  the  proper  frame  of  mind  to  be 
approached  with  the  idea  of  owning  one  of  the  installations 
themselves.  It  was  up  to  the  manufacturer  to  turn  this 
advantage  into  a  desire  to  buy. 

Soon  after  the  short  letter  announcing  the  winner  of 
the  prize  had  been  sent  out,  each  judge  received  the 
following  letter: 

Did  your  favorite  receive  the  $50  cash 
prize? 

If  he  didn't,   he  certainly  came  close  to 
it.     It  was  a  hard  race;   every  one  of  the 
letters  was  really  highly  eligible  for  the 
prize,   because  every  one  of  them  told  in 
terms  of  actual  experience  why  the 
Water  Supply  System  is  a  blessing  to  any 
home,   and  every  one  told  this  story  well. 

After  reading  all  these  enthusiastic  let- 
ters from  people  who  are  using  the  system 
in  their  homes,   we  feel  sure  that  you  have 
often  said  to  yourself,    or  to  your  wife: 
"Wouldn't  it  be  nice  if  we  had  one  of 
these  systems  in  our  home?"     And  it 
certainly  would  be  nice,   let  me  assure  you. 

Think  of  having  running  water  in  the 
kitchen,    in  the  basement,    in  the  bath  room, 
just  WHEN  you  want  it  and  WHERE  you  want 
it;   no  pumping,   no  heavy  pails  to  carry — 
just  a  turn  of  the  faucet,    that's  all.     It 
makes  farm  life  worth  living. 

We  suggest  that  you  run  over  to  Mr. 
Jefferson's  place  and  take  a  look  at  his 
system.      It  will  be  mighty  interesting  and 
we  feel  sure  that  Mr.   Jefferson  will  be 
very  glad  to  explain  everything  to  you. 
Better  do  this  as  soon  as  you  can  get  away 
for  an  afternoon. 


How  indifferent 
readers  were 
converted  into 
live  prospects 


Following  up  at 
the  right  time 


Getting  the 
prospect  to  see 
your  side 


237 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Making  sales- 
men out  of  your 
customers 


How  to  appeal 
to  the  home 
pride 


This  was  used 
as  a  sales  argu- 
ment 


This  letter  had  a  helpful  personal  touch,  because  it 
referred  to  the  man  who  owned  a  system  in  the  immediate 
neighborhood.  The  owners,  as  a  rule,  took  great  pains 
to  show  carefully  their  installations  to  visitors,  and  fully 
substantiated  their  written  testimony  about  them.  And 
they  really  knew  even  more  about  the  installation  than 
they  did  when  they  wrote  their  contributions  to  the 
booklet,  because  they  had  had  an  opportunity  to  read 
testimonials  from  239  other  users. 

Two  weeks  later  this  letter  was  mailed  to  each  one 
of  the  judges: 

After  visiting  the  home  of  Mr.   Jefferson, 
hasn't  it  often  occurred  to  you  that  a 

.     System  would  be  just  the  thing 
for  your  own  home? 

You  can  afford  it  as  well  as  Mr.   Jefferson, 
I  believe.     Besides,    it  is  not  a  luxury, 
but  one  of  the  necessities  of  farm  life. 
Think  how  much  it  will  mean  to  your  wife  to 
have  running  water  just  when  it  is  wanted, 
and  where  it  is  wanted.     No  more  hard 
pumping,  no  more  heavy  pails  to  carry,   no 
need  whatever  of  going  out  into  the  cold, 
the  wet,  and  the  snow. 

You  owe  it  to  your  wife  and  yourself  to 
install  one  of  these  water  supply  systems 
in  your  home.      It  will  not  only  make  your 
whole  home  life  on  the  farm  truly  worth 
living,   but  it  will  also  give  you  much  more 
time  to  really  enjoy  it  thoroughly  and  to 
your  heart's  content. 

We  enclose  a  postal.     Return  it  to  us 
promptly,   and  we  will  immediately  get  busy 
drawing  up  specifications  and  estimating 
the  cost,  all  without  any  obligations  on 
your  part  whatsoever. 

Mail  this  card  the  first  thing  tomorrow 
morning,   SURE. 

The  net  result  of  this  campaign,  as  mentioned  in  the 
first  paragraph  of  this  chapter  was  to  sell — at  a  very 
reasonable  sales  cost — 150  complete  outfits. 


238 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


Here  is  an  explanation  of  this  campaign's  success: 
It  was  very  carefully  planned;  every  factor  was  taken 
into  consideration;  the  prospects  scarcely  knew  they  were 
prospects  until  they  had  convinced  themselves  that  they 
really  wanted  the  proposition. 

Let  us  take  up  some  of  the  interesting  as  well  as 
profitable  methods  and  form  letters  that  have  been  un- 
usually successful  in  building  good  will. 

A  big  mail-order  house,  known  from  one  end  of  the 
country  to  the  other,  is  equally  certain  of  the  value  of 
form  letters  of  a  personal  turn.  No  occasion  is  too 
insignificant  not  to  warrant  a  letter,  provided  a  letter 
will  put  a  possible  or  actual  customer  in  a  better  frame 
of  mind  toward  this  big  concern.  Witness  the  case  of  a 
letter  mailed  to  one  customer  not  long  ago:  merely  one 
instance  among  hundreds. 

This  customer  had  received,  in  one  of  his  shipments 
from  this  mail-order  house,  the  order  and  bill  of  some 
other  customer.  He  mailed  it  back,  expecting  no  reply. 
But  here  is  the  courteous  form  letter  they  wrote  to  him 
immediately: 

Thanks  for  sending  back  the  order  and 
bills  which  were  packed  with  your  goods  by 
mistake. 

Because  they  were  mixed  up  with  your  goods, 
we  could  not  tell  what  to  do  with  the 
articles  called  for  on  that  order.     But  by 
your  sending  them  back  to  us  promptly,  we 
are  able  to  send  the  goods  along  to  the. 
rightful  owner  so  that  he  will  not  be 
disappointed  for  Christmas. 

.  It  was  a  small  matter.  The  customer  had  no  idea 
that  he  would  receive  a  letter.  But  this  note  in  appre- 
ciation of  his  courtesy  confirmed  his  behef  in  the  concern's 
thoughtfulness,  and  he  showed  it  to  at  least  one  of  his 
friends — who  was  not  a  mail-order  buyer — as  a  sample 
of  this  particular  firm's  methods  of  building  and  holding 
good  will. 

In  New  York  there  is  a  wholesaler  who  is  also  firmly 
convinced  that  it  pays  to  send  form  letters  to  his  dealers 
whenever  it  is  possible  for  him  to  do  so.  He  became  a 
convert  after  an  experience  he  had  while  following  his 


Why  the  cam- 
paign was  suc- 
cessful 


Errors  are 

sometimes 
unavoidable — 


— but  they  can 
often  be  capi- 
talized 


239 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  man 
wanted  to  know 
''why" 


Here's  what  he 
found  f 


A  little  friendly 
interest  got  the 
order 


chief  hobby.  This  hobby  consists  in  trying  to  find  out 
why  customers  purchase  from  him,  rather  than  from 
competitors.  He  reasons  that  if  he  finds  the  *'why" 
back  of  an  order,  he  can  use  similar  tactics  for  bigger 
orders  or  with  other  prospects. 

One  day  a  customer  entered  the  house,  and,  after 
looking  over  the  stock  carefully,  placed  an  order  that 
figured  up  to  about  $1,500.  This  is  twice  as  large  as  the 
average  order  in  the  wholesaler's  line  of  business,  and  it 
was  more  than  three  times  the  size  of  orders  the  house 
had  previously  received  from  this  particular  customer. 

News  of  the  transaction  soon  reached  the  wholesaler 
himself,  and  he  was  sufficiently  interested  to  make  a 
personal  investigation.  He  ran  over  the  items  with  the 
house  salesman  and  engaged  the  customer  in  conversation 
on  a  chance  that  the  reasons  behind  the  order  might  crop 
out.  It  was  a  slow  process.  The  customer  spoke  in  high 
terms  of  the  salesman  who  covered  his  territory,  but  he 
hinted  at  nothing  the  latter  had  done  to  win  undivided 
favor.    Finally,  however,  the  secret  was  out: 

"Where  is  Joe  Chandler?"  the  customer  asked. 
Chandler  was  the  sales  manager. 

"Over  in  Michigan,  taking  a  few  days'  rest,"  the 
wholesaler  replied. 

"I  was  wondering  about  him.  One  of  the  men 
downstairs  said  he  was  out  of  town.  I  wanted  to  give 
him  this  order." 

"Yes?" 

"Yes!  You  see,  I  had  to  go  to  the  hospital  recently. 
I  spent  nearly  a  month  there  before  I  was  in  shape  to 
get  back  in  the  store.  Joe  wrote  me  a  letter.  Said  he 
heard  I  was  sick.  I  wrote  back,  and,  before  I  left,  I  had 
half  a  dozen  letters  from  him." 

"I  see,"  the  wholesaler  replied,  "and  what  made  Joe 
bother  you  up  there?" 

"Bother!  Why,  thunder,  it  was  no  bother.  I  was 
lonesome  as  an  owl,  and,  outside  of  my  family,  Joe  was 
the  only  person  that  paid  any  attention  to  me." 

"What  did  he  write  about?" 

"Nothing  in  particular — nice,  friendly  letters;  not 
business;  just  a  word  or  two  about  folks  we  both  knew, 
and  things  that  were  happening  around  town.  I  wanted 
to  give  Joe  the  order  to  show  him  how  much  I  really 
appreciated  his  thoughtfulness." 


240 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


The  wholesaler  is  now  an  earnest  convert  to  letter 
writing  and  has  many  effective  paragraphs  prepared 
that  help  greatly  in  building  and  holding  good  will.  His 
sales  manager  had  spoken  repeatedly  about  his  ideas  on 
this  subject,  and  he  knew  that  more  letters  were  being 
written  than  ever  before  under  any  other  sales  manager. 
Until  this  incident  occurred,  he  had  not  realized  all  the 
"workings"  of  the  plan,  and  the  sales  power  behind  it. 

Chandler,  the  sales  manager,  has  his  own  ideas 
about  sales  letters.  Therefore,  he  seldom  dictates  in  the 
old-fashioned,  red-pepper,  ''ginger-up"  style.  That  is 
probably  because  he  is  incHned  to  be  a  quiet  sort  of  fellow 
— not  that  he  fails  to  see  the  value  of  the  other  type  of 
letter  if  the  man  who  writes  it  happens  to  be  built  that 
way.  He  writes  every  time  an  opportunity  offers,  and 
his  letters  have  the  knack  of  keeping  a  lot  of  dealers 
in  a  friendly  attitude  toward  the  firm. 

After  his  experience  with  the  effectiveness  of 
Chandler's  letters,  the  wholesaler  ran  through  the  files 
to  find  out  more  about  them.  What  he  found  resulted 
in  the  official  recognition  of  form  but  personal-sounding 
letters  as  an  important  part  of  his  general  sales  campaign. 

Now  a  stenographer  makes  it  her  business  to  collect 
all  the  news  she  can  find  about  his  customers.  She 
reads  the  trade  papers.  Salesmen  bring  her  little,  signifi- 
cant facts  which  they  occasionally  happen  to  run  across. 
Not  only  customers,  but  prospects  as  well,  come  within 
the  range  of  her  efforts. 

The  purpose  of  it  all  is  to  get  the  material  for  form 
letters  which  will  really  be  read  gladly. 

The  danger  in  such  a  plan  as  this — in  fact,  in  any 
form-letter  plan — is  that  the  letters  will  not  be  personal- 
sounding  enough.  That  sounds  perhaps  like  a  paradox; 
but  it  really  is  not. 

Personal  letters  can  be  the  most  impersonal  of  all, 
if  the  wrong  people  write  them.  If  you  are  the  right 
person  to  dictate  letters  and  form  paragraphs  you  have 
in  your  make-up  a  bit  of  imagination.  It  helps  you  to  see 
the  fellow  who  is  to  read  your  letter.  You  have  just 
enough  abifity  in  the  way  of  letting  your  thoughts  and 
feelings  flow  out  in  words — that  is,  the  abifity  to  express 
yourself.  Not  too  much  of  this  quafity,  or  you  may  talk 
too  freely  about  the  beauties  of  nature,  when  you  really 
want  prospects  to  buy  beans. 


Do  your  letters 
express  your 
personality? 


Where  the  news 
came  from 


One  way  to  get 
the  personal 
touch 


241 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Letterheads 
sometimes  turn 
i  the  trick 


Getting  under 
his  skin  right 
at  the  start 


This  letter  com- 
bines sincerity 
and  enthusiasm 


The  qualities  you  have  most  strongly  of  all,  however, 
if  you  write  good  letters,  are  sincerity  and  enthusiasm. 
These  two  fundamental  qualities  will  usually  enable  any 
man  to  write  form  letters  that  get  the  business,  even  if 
he  does  not  happen  to  know  the  grammatical  error 
involved  in  "they  was." 

Genuine  friendliness  declares  itself  at  once.  Just 
outside  Boston  is  a  farmer  who  raises  good  things  to 
eat,  which  he  markets  direct  to  consumers.  He  sells  by 
mail.  In  selecting  a  letterhead,  he  has  taken  care  to  get 
one  that  of  itself  almost  makes  you  think  of  big,  old- 
fashioned,  farm-house  dinners.  And  then  all  his  form 
letters  proceed  to  carry  out  this  suggestion  of  fresh, 
good  things  to  eat. 

The  following  letter  recently  went  to  some  of  the 
friends  on  his  prospect  list  in  time  to  catch  them  for  their 
Christmas  buying: 

Would  you  like  to  try  a  soft-roasting 
capon,  weighing  anywhere  from  6  to  12 
pounds,    for  your  Christmas  dinner? 

I  have  for  my  private  family  trade  a  flock 
of  Light  Brahma  capons,   which  are  about 
the  softest  and  largest  roasting  capons  on 
the  market.      They  are  nearly  six  months 
old,   and  will  be  just  ripe  for  the  Christ- 
mas dinner. 

By  my  auto  delivery  I  can  bring  them 
direct  from  the  farm  to  your  door  in  an 
hour.     They  will  be  picked,   dressed,   and 
drawn,    ready  for  roasting;   you  can  have  any 
weight  you  may  select  between  6  and  12 
pounds . 

Capons  are  better  than  turkeys,   I  think, 
and  the  Light  Brahmas  in  particular  make 
the  best  roasting  fowl  I  know.     Try  one 
and  see  for  yourself. 

I  can  deliver  these  at  your  door  for  the 
Christmas  and  New  Year's  dinner  WHILE  THEY 
LAST  for  35  cents  a  pound.      Owing  to  the 
limited  size  of  my  flock,   I  can  guarantee 
to  fill  only  the  earliest  orders. 


242 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


Please  use  the  enclosed  postcard,   or  tele- 
phone your  order  to  me — Newton  109. 

A  letter  like  this  is  honestly  friendly.  Largely  for 
that  reason,  and  also  because  the  writer  knows  how  to 
describe  his  product  in  an  appetizing  way,  it  inspires 
the  confidence  its  writer  aims  to  arouse. 

In  these  days  we  have  to  plow  deeper  to  get  business 
than  men  did  a  generation  or  so  back..  They  burned 
business  stumps,  sowed  seed,  and  harvested  a  good  crop. 
We  are  finding  it  increasingly  necessary  to  use  fertilizer 
— in  the  form  of  intensive  sales  methods,  and  the  right 
kind  of  a  form  letter  is,  of  coarse,  an  exceptionally  good 
business-getting  method. 

Now,  let  us  take  up  some  methods  in  letter  writing 
that  have  made  difficult  collections,  and  without  offending 
customers. 

"During  the  months  of  October  and  November  we 
found  that  collections  were  larger  than  ever  before  in 
the  history  of  our  company,"  says  the  sales  manager 
who  tells  his  experiences  below.  During  the  year  in 
question  his  organization  collected  24,000  accounts 
ranging  in  amount  from  $10  to  $5,000  and  resorted  to 
legal  aid  but  23  times;  this,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
country  was  then  supposed  to  be  unusually  hampered  by 
international  complications. 

The  success  of  those  two  months  was  not  extremely 
unusual,  for  we  regularly  follow  a  policy  of  close  collec- 
tions, and  it  has  been  the  means  of  educating  our  cus- 
tomers to  the  habit  of  promptness.  "When  a  bill  becomes 
due,  we  expect  the  debtor  to  pay  it.  This  poHcy  is  never 
altered  unless  some  dispute  arises,  which  justifies  the 
debtor  in  holding  up  payment.  As  a  result,  a  customer 
who  has  purchased  goods  from  us  knows  what  we 
expect;  and  few  customers  hesitate  to  comply  with  our 
requirements.  Probably  other  managers  will  be  inter- 
ested in  the  methods  and  actual  letters  that  produced 
these  satisfactory  results. 

My  aim,  in  preparing  form  letters  to  debtors,  is 
always  to  convey  the  idea  that  I  am  master  of  the 
situation.  I  approach  the  debtor  firmly,  yet  courteously. 
Before  I  decide  on  a  letter,  I  convince  myself  that  it  is 
going  to  bring  the  money.    Therefore  my  letter  never 


Why  this  letter 
paid 


No  depressing 
periods  in  this 
collection  de- 
partment 


Educating  cus- 
tomers to  pay 
promptly 


243 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  man 
believes  his 
policy  pays 
him 


Holding  the 
debtor  to  the 
terms 


Should  dis- 
count dates  be 
rigidly  adhered 
tof 


wavers  nor  permits  the  debtor  to  read  doubt  of  my 
intention  between  the  lines. 

I  never  beg  for  payment,  I  eliminate  such  phrasea 
as  "if  convenient,"  ''we  shall  appreciate,"  ''will  you," 
"can  you  not."  They  are  weak,  and  suggest  to  the 
debtor  that  he  may,  if  he  wishes,  have  more  time;  they 
give  him  an  opportunity  to  put  you  off.  Moreover,  I 
never  suggest  an  excuse  for  my  asking  the  debtor  to  pay 
promptly,  other  than  the  fact  that  the  order  which  he 
signed  gave  him  just  so  long  to  arrange  for  pajnnent. 
Excuses  employed  by  some  collection  men — hke  the  old 
one,  "we  are  in  need  of  funds" — are  seldom  effective. 
Yet,  all  through  my  correspondence,  I  try  to  manifest 
the  utmost  fairness. 

The  "we"  element  is  eliminated  as  far  as  possible. 
Wherever  it  is  possible  to  do  so,  another  word  is  used, 
or  it  is  left  out.  The  "you"  element  predominates  in 
every  case. 

I  insist  on  having  my  letters  neatly  typewritten. 
They  must  be  free  from  erasures.  Punctuation,  spelling, 
and  paragraphing  must  be  perfect.  No  abbreviations 
are  allowed.  The  typewriting  must  be  "blocked"  in 
t}.^  center  of  the  letterhead  as  perfectly  as  the  stenog- 
rapher can  estimate;  the  right-hand  margin  must  not  be 
any  more  ragged  than  can  be  helped. 

Every  direct  demand  for  payment  must  show  the 
date  of  shipment  or  the  due  date,  what  the  order  covers, 
amount  of  the  account  and  any  credits' against  it.  The 
debtor  thus  has  all  the  information  and  figures  before 
him,  and  these  can  be  checked  against  his  records  and 
books  in  case  he  may  have  mislaid  or  lost  the  original 
invoice  and  statement.  And  there  is  no  reason  why  the 
slow-pay  should  spar  for  time  by  writing  back  for  any 
of  this  information. 

Many  customers  will  take  off  the  2%  discount, 
regardless  of  the  fact  that  the  time  limit  may  have 
expired  by  several  days;  and  some  will  deduct  the  amount 
even  though  the  account  has  reached  maturity.  This  I 
never  allow,  unless  the  debtor,  when  remitting,  presents 
a  reasonable  excuse  for  so  doing;  or  unless  the  firm  is 
large  and  I  know  they  pass  their  bills  for  payment  on  a 
certain  date  each  month. 

My  form  letter  to  the  man  who  takes  the  discount 
after  the  time  expires  is  as  follows: 


244 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


Thank  you  very  kindly  for  your  check  in 
the  amount  of  $137.20,  which  we  have 
applied  against  your  account  of  $140. 

Your  attention,  however,  is  called  to  the 
fact  that  you  have  taken  off  the  2%   dis- 
count, although  the  10  days'  time  in  which 
you  were  allowed  to  do  so  has  expired  by 
20  days. 

Probably  this  was  an  oversight  on  your 
part.  If  so,  you  will,  of  course,  mail 
this  small  difference  at  once.  Or  did  you 
purposely  take  this  discount,  feeling 
justified  in  doing  so  for  some  particular 
reason?  If  so,  you  will  undoubtedly  be 
glad  and  willing  to  let  us  know  the  cir- 
cumstances. 

Let  us  give  you  the  conditions  we  face: 
We  have  thousands  of  customers  who  pay 
their  bills  within  the  10  days,  simply  to 
take  advantage  of  this  discount.  You  will 
appreciate  that  we  would  be  doing  them  a 
great  injustice  by  compelling  them  to  pay 
within  the  time  limit,  while  we  allowed 
you  to  settle  at  maturity  and  still  take 
off  the  discount. 

Then,  too,  you  probably  know  that  a  manu- 
facturing concern  depends  for  raw  material 
upon  the  money  received  from  its  outstand- 
ing accounts.  And  when  we  are  paid 
promptly,  we  can  purchase  these  raw  mate- 
rials in  bulk  quantities,  thus  getting  the 
benefit  of  a  large  discount  and  in  addi- 
tion a  2%  discount.  This  means  to  us  the 
saving  of  a  considerable  amount  of  money 
yearly.  So,  to  encourage  our  customers  to 
pay  promptly,  and  place  the  money  in  our 
hands  to  use,  we  give  them  a  2%   discount 
when  they  pay  within  10  days  from  the  date 
of  the  invoice. 

In  view  of  these  facts,  unless  you  feel 
you  have  a  good  reason  for  taking  off  the 


This  man 
insists  on  an 
explanation 


Appealing  to  a 
customer's  sense 
of  fairness 


This  argument 
often  gets 
the  cash 


245 


THE  AUTOMATIC  T.ETTER  WRITER 


Sometimes  this 
works — some- 
times not 


When  terms  are 
not  lived  up  to 


Why  this 
letter  pays 


discount,  we  feel  confident  that  your 
check  for  the  difference  will  be  received 
promptly. 

Results  obtained  with  this  letter  have  been  very 
satisfactory.  Still,  there  is  an  occasional  customer  who 
will  seemingly  ignore  it.  In  such  cases,  I  follow  up  the 
letter  with  a  reminder  in  10  days. 

If  this  does  not  get  results,  I  usually  drop  the  matter. 
The  amount  is  so  small  that  it  is  a  very  delicate  matter 
to  wrangle  over. 

He  is  written  a  final  letter,  though,  in  which  I  state 
that  because  the  amount  is  so  small  we  have  decided  to 
allow  it  this  time;  but  he  must  bear  in  mind  that  in  future 
dealings  we  shaU  require  him  to  remit  within  the  specified 
time  if  he  wants  to  take  advantage  of  the  discount. 

As  a  result  we  have  no  difficulty  of  this  sort  with 
customers  who  have  once  purchased  goods  from  us.  They 
understand  what  we  expect  of  them  and  they  are  careful 
to  live  up  to  our  regulations. 

My  first  letter,  following  10  days  after  I  have  sent 
the  statements  to  customers  who  have  not  remitted, 
reads  like  this: 

Your  attention  is  respectfully  directed  to 
our  invoice  of  July  10,    for  $49.80,   cover- 
ing 300  pounds  Concrete  Churn,   statement 
of  which  was  sent  you  a  few  days  ago. 

By  referring  to  the  original   invoice,   you 
will  see  that,    according  to  the  terms,    the 
account  became  due  on  August  10. 

You  will,    therefore,   kindly  let  us  have 
your  check  by  return  mail. 

You  will  notice  that  the  first  paragraph  gives  all  the 
information  about  the  account,  and  without  definitely 
saying  so  reminds  the  debtor  gently  that  this  is  a  second 
request  for  payment. 

The  second  paragraph  gives  the  due  date,  from  which 
he  quickly  notes  it  is  overdue,  and  how  long  overdue.  It 
assumes  the  attitude,  and  subtly  conveys  it  to  the  cus- 
tomer, without  saying  so  in  words,  that,  inasmuch  as 
we  have  not  written  to  the  contrary,  there  is  no  reason 
why  payment  should  not  be  made  promptly. 


246 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


The  third  paragraph  conveys  the  idea  that  there  is  no 
doubt,  in  our  minds,  but  that  the  return  mail  will  bring 
the  check.    We  indicate  no  hesitation  or  doubt. 

The  letter  is  courteous  and  firm.  In  it  we  have  not 
begged  for  payment;  we  show  that  we  expect  it.  The 
entire  letter  is  predominated  by  the  ''will  you"  element; 
the  ' '  we  "  element  is  left  out. 

A  record  of  the  results  obtained  with  this  letter  shows 
that  out  of  100  mailed,  78  brought  checks;  four,  requests 
for  short  extensions;  and  one  brought  a  request  for  an 
adjustment  of  a  complaint. 

When  a  debtor  writes  me  in  a  straightforward  manner 
requesting  an  extension  of  time  on  his  account,  I  always 
grant  it:  provided  the  requested  extension  is  not  too 
long,  provided  it  is  the  customer's  first  request  on  that 
particular  account,  and  provided  also  my  past  experience 
with  him  has  not  taught  me  that  he  has  a  habit  of 
making  such  requests. 

If,  however,  the  length  of  time  requested  seems 
unreasonable,  I  shorten  it;  if  it  is  the  debtor's  second 
request,  I  usually  grant  it,  but  explain  to  him  frankly 
that  he  cannot  consistently  expect  further  favors  for  the 
same  reason ;  and  in  cases  where  he  shows  signs  of  develop- 
ing the  habit  of  asking  for  extensions,  I  write  him  at 
length,  explaining  that  he  should  and  must  hereafter 
arrange  to  meet  his  bills  more  promptly  to  insure  our  con- 
tinued confidence  in  him. 

In  cases,  though,  where  the  account  is  large,  and  an 
extension  of  more  than  two  weeks  is  asked,  I  generally 
request  a  reasonable  part  payment  by  return  mail  and 
allow  an  extension  on  the  balance. 

In  granting  these  extensions,  I  never  grant  "a  short 
time"  or  "a,  few  days."  Always,  I  require  a  definite 
payment  date;  and  if  the  customer  does  not  mention  one 
in  his  letter  I  fix  it  for  him.  On  these  occasions,  I  write 
this  letter: 

I  refer  to  your  letter  of  the 
requesting  a  few  days'   extension  on  your 
account  of     .      .      , 

It  is  a  pleasure  reasonably  to  accom- 
modate you  in  this  instance,   and  we  shall, 
therefore,    grant  you  until  Monday,   October 
On  this  date,    then,   at  the  latest. 


This  letter 
brought  in 
checks 


Suiting  the 
rules  to  individ- 
ual cases 


Perhaps  this  is 
the  best  way  to 
handle  it 


247 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


One  way  in 
which  your 
bank  can  help 


This  letter 
brought  good 
results 


How  one  man 
checks  up 
drafts 


your  check  in  full  payment  is  expected 
in  our  office. 

On  short  extensions  of  time,  if  the  remittance  is  not 
received  on  the  specified  date,  I  write  politely  but  force- 
fully. If  reasons  justify  my  granting  a  somewhat 
longer  extension,  I  usually  am  careful  to  remind  the 
debtor  a  day  or  so  in  advance. 

Frequently  I  resort  to  drafts.  By  employing  the  aid 
of  a  bank  official  to  present  my  account  for  collection,  I 
gain  formality  and  weight. 

I  never,  however,  draw  upon  a  customer  without 
first  having  given  him  10  days'  notice.  My  second 
letter  reads  as  follows: 

With  additional   reference  to  the  payment 
of  our  invoice  of  July  10,    covering  300 
pounds  Concrete  Churn — $49.80 — which  be- 
came due  on  August  10:      Unless  we  have 
received  your  check  within  the  next  10 
days,    or  have  heard  from  you  with  objec- 
tions,  we  shall  assume  it  is  satisfactory 
to  you  to  have  us  draw  for  the  amount  now 
overdue  and  act  accordingly. 

Your  remittance  direct,   however,    is  much 
preferred,    and  we  earnestly  urge  that  you 
send  check  by  return  mail. 

Twenty  of  these  letters  brought  13  checks  and  two 
requests  not  to  draw  drafts. 

At  the  expiration  of  10  days,  if  payment  is  not  forth- 
coming, or  if  a  satisfactory  explanation  has  not  been 
given,  a  draft  is  drawn. 

On  small  amounts,  drafts  are  made  payable  on  sight; 
on  large  ones,  a  few  days  of  grace  are  given.  After  the 
draft  is  deposited  in  the  bank  for  collection,  I  keep  just 
as  close  watch  on  the  account  as  before,  because  I  have 
learned  that  some  banks  will  favor  debtors  by  holding 
drafts  drawn  against  them  several  days.  If  payment  is 
not  made,  or  the  draft  is  not  returned  dishonored  at  the 
expiration  of  eight  days  from  the  date  of  presentation, 
I  trace  it  through  the  bank,  and  at  the  same  time  make  a 
more  urgent  demand. 

When  a  draft  is  drawn  upon  a  debtor  and  returned 
dishonored,  or  in  instances  where  I  do  not  make  a  draft 


248 


MAKING  YOUR  FORM  LETTERS  WORK 


and  my  second  demand  brings  no  response,  I  write  what 
I  term  my  "put-up-to-'em"  letter.  This  reads  about  as 
follows: 

The  First  National  Bank  has  returned  to  us 
dishonored  and  marked  "no  attention"  our 
draft  for  $49.80,   drawn  upon  you  a  few 
days  ago,    covering  your  indebtedness  for 
300  pounds  Concrete  Churn — shipped  July 
10. 

This  is  our  fourth  request  for  a  settle- 
ment of  our  account:    three  of  which  appar- 
ently have  been  ignored.      You  are  cer- 
tainly not  justified  in  treating  us  in 
this  manner;    if  you  have  what  you  deem 
a  reasonable  excuse  for  holding  up  pay- 
ment,  we  are  entitled  to  know  what  it  is; 
if  not,   a  check  should  have  been  sent  be- 
fore this  date. 

Your  explanation  or  check,    therefore,   will 
be  looked  for  positively  in  the  return 
mail. 

This  is  putting  the  matter  squarely  up  to  the  debtor; 
and,  to  my  mind,  there  is  absolutely  no  excuse  for  his  not 
answering.  Twenty-five  letters  like  this  one  obtained  23 
answers — 17  of  which  contained  checks. 

If  the  fault  is  not  ours,  I  do  not  so  inform  him  in  a 
short  and  sharp  answer  and  consider  the  matter  settled. 
I  try  to  help  him  find  where  the  trouble  does  lie,  and 
straighten  out  his  difficulty.  This  costs  me  very  Httle,  and 
I  find  it  wins  the  lasting  friendship  of  customers. 

If  the  complaint  is  due  to  a  misunderstanding  upon 
the  part  of  the  customer,  I  try  to  point  it  out  to  him  in  a 
courteous  letter — usually  a  long  one — always  endeavoring 
to  word  it  so  that  there  will  be  no  arousing  of  antagonism. 
If,  however,  the  customer  has  a  real  grievance,  I  first 
ask  him  what  he  feels  we  should  do  to  make  matters 
right.  Most  men  have  a  sense  of  reasonableness  in  them, 
and  if  they  see  we  are  wilHng  to  listen  to  their  side  of 
the  story  they  will  be  fair. 

If  a  customer's  proposition  is  what  I  consider  more 
than  he  should  ask  of  us,  I  meet  him  in  it  as  far  as  I 
consider  consistent  with  squareness  all  round  and  try 


Putting  it  up  to 
the  customer 


Letters  that  win 
good  will 


Getting  at  the 
root  of  the 
trouble 


249 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Points  to  to  make  him  see  our  side  of  the  story.    The  average  man 

remember  in  can  and  will  recognize  a  fair  proposition.    And  experience 

handling  com-       has  taught  me  that  if  we  do  not  attempt  to  force  him  by 

plaints  argmnent  into  our  way  of  thinking,  but  offer  him  instead 

a  fair  compromise  and  ask  him  to  consider  it,  he  will 

almost  always  end  up  by  coming  to  see  things  as  we 

wish  him  to. 

In   adjusting   complaints,    I    handle    them   just   as 

quickly  as  possible,  so  as  not  to  have  the  account  held 

up  indefinitely.    As  soon  as  matters  are  straightened  out, 

I  ask  for  the  money  in  the  usual  way. 

This  letter  If  my  ''put-up-to-'em"  letter  does  not  bring  results, 

brought  in  the  next  step  I  take  is  to  threaten  suit.    My  letter  is 

the  cash  about  as  follows: 

If  within  the  next  10  days  you  do  not  send 
us  your  check  for  $49.80,    in  payment  of 
our  invoice  of  July  10,    covering  300 
pounds  Concrete  Churn,    or  explain  why  you 
have  held  up  payment,   we  shall   feel  com- 
pelled to  hand  the  account  to  our 
attorneys. 

We  shall   regret  having  any  trouble,   but 
you  must  admit  that  when  you  fail  to  meet 
your  obligations,   or  explain  why,   we  are 
justified  in  taking  measures  to  force  a 
different  attitude  upon  you. 

Will  YOU  do  what  you  should  to  avoid  a 
lawsuit? 

What  form  This  letter,  too,  has  proved  very  effective.    24  letters 

letters  did  for         like  it  brought  17  checks  in  full  payment  of  account; 
one  man  4,    checks    in    part   payment;    and    3,  explanations  or 

excuses  for  holding  up  payment  and  requests  for  short 
extensions.  Every  letter  was  answered;  not  one  debtor 
was  offended.  When  I  state  that  during  one  year  out 
of  24,000  accounts,  ranging  in  amount  from  $10  to  $5,000, 
I  have  resorted  to  legal  aid  but  23  times,  the  form  letters 
speak  for  themselves. 

If,  however,  this  last  letter  brings  no  check  and  no 
response  at  the  expiration  of  the  10'  days,  the  account 
goes  promptly  into  the  attorney's  hands.  I  never 
threaten  to  do  a  thing,  in  handhng  collections,  without 
backing  my  threat  with  action,  and  promptly. 


250 


CHAPTER  XV 

OPENERS  AND  CLOSERS  THAT  MAKE  YOUR 
FORM  LETTERS  PERSONAL 

Get  your  prospect's  attention  and  interest  right  at     Why  these 
the  start.     This  is  an  old  and  tested  rule  of  letter  writ-     letters  get 
ing,  and  many  men  who  sell  goods  by  mail  find  if  they     attention 
can  write  a  first  paragraph  that  will  interest  prospects 
and  make  them  read  the  rest  of  the  letter,  they  will,  in 
a  large  number  of  instances,  escape  the  waste  basket. 

I  have  always  been  interested  in  sales  letters,  because 
I  have  to  write  a  lot  of  them — I  am  manager  of  a  mer- 
cantile agency — and  I  have  given  this  question  of  first 
paragraphs  considerable  study.  Every  interesting  letter 
that  comes  to  my  office  goes  into  a  special  file.  Two 
or  three  times  a  month  I  run  through  the  letters  I  have 
collected  and  pick  out  the  ones  that  seem  worth  keeping. 

In  this  way  I  have  secured  a  permanent  collection  that     Where  this 
I  value  highly.    When  I  need  an  idea  I  go  to  my  file  of     wan  gets  his 
good  letters,  and  often  get  a  valuable  suggestion  that  I     ideas 
can  use  in  the  letter  I  am  planning.    In  order  to  pass  a 
good  thing  along,  I  am  giving  here  some  of  the  best 
"openers"  in  these  letters  from  my  collection. 

This  letter  will  be  a  very  short  one.  As 
it  will  be  about  money  matters,  it  should 
be  doubly  interesting. 


Yes,  this  is  a  form  letter,  but  it  is  de- 
cidedly worth  the  30  seconds  it  will  take 
you  to  read  it! 


Can  you  put  your  finger  on  just  the  record 
you  want  instantly? 


251 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


These 
It 


openers 
might  work 
for  you 


This  could  be 
applied  in 
other  ways 


Why  these 
letters  pulled 


Going!   Going! — Soon  'twill  be  GONE! 

Your  last  chance  to  buy  space  in  the  Feb- 
ruary "Farmer"  at  the  $500  rate. 


The  shorter  the  act,  the  longer  the  encore. 

The  shorter  the  letter,  the  more  readers 
it  will  have,  and,  as  we  assume  that  you, 
in  common  with  ourselves,  have  your  favor- 
ite authors,  this  letter  will  be  short  and 
right  to  the  point,  and  we  candidly  believe 
it  will  pay  you  to  read  every  word  of  it. 


This  is  letter  number  three. 

We  did  not  number  our  previous  letters 
because  we  did  not  believe  we  would  need 
to  write  subsequent  letters. 

A  concern  making  farm  implements,  which  mails 
millions  of  sales  letters  each  year,  begins  one  of  its  most 
effective  letters  in  this  way: 

You  can't  do  so  very  much  with  2  cents 
nowadays,  especially  in  some  directions. 
In  these  times  of  excessively  high  prices 
it  wouldn't  buy  much  food,  but  2  cents 
spent  in  a  certain  way  will  do  more  than 
you  realize. 

Two  unusually  successful  letters,  used  to  sell  filing 
equipment,  started  out  like  this: 

If  you  saw  an  employee  throwing  50-cent 
pieces  out  of  the  window,   you  would  be 
"jarred,"  to  say  the  least. 


When  you  want  a  letter,   an  order,   an 
invoice,    or  any  office  record,   you  want  it 
QUICK. 

It  may  mean  $1,000,   some  day,    to  be  able  to 
find  instantly  Brown's  quotation.   Smith's 


252 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


order,    or  the   copy  of  Jones'    letter,    for 
on  this  particular  record  may  hinge  an 
important  decision. 

A  firm  of  letter  specialists  began  one  of  their  letters 
in  this  interesting  way: 

An  enterprising  corner  grocer  once  filled 
a  quart  jar  with  beans,   placed  it  in  his 
window,    and  offered  $5  to  the  person  who 
guessed  nearest  to  the  number  of  beans  it 
contained. 

Many  widely  differing  guesses  were  regis- 
tered.     But  one  man  bought  some  beans, 
carried  them  home,    filled  a  quart  jar  and 
proceeded  to  count  them.      He  got  the  $5. 

The  first  letter  sent  out  by  an  unusually  successful 
concern  which  sells  by  mail  a  time-  and  labor-saving 
office  device,  starts  out  with  this  extremely  frank 
confession: 

Your  name  was  purchased  by  us  along  with 
2,000  other  names  and  addresses. 

The  same  firm  opens  one  of  its  follow-up  letters  with 
a  cleverly  related  anecdote: 

The  night  Lincoln  was  nominated  for  the 
presidency,   his  wife  locked  him  out.      After 
Mr.   Lincoln  had  knocked  repeatedly,   Mrs. 
Lincoln  called  out,    "What  have  you  been 
doing   'traipsing'   around  till  this  hour  of 
the  night?" 

"My  dear,"   said  Mr.   Lincoln,    "I  have  just 
been  nominated  for  President  of  the  United 
States." 

"Abe,"  was  Mrs.   Lincoln's  reply,    "I   thought 
you  were  drinking  before;    now  I  know  it." 

Two  letters  that  helped  business  for  a  laundry  started 
out  like  this: 


Gaining    aiicn- 
tion  at  the  start 


Sometimes 
frankness  gains 
confidence 


Nearly  every- 
one would  read 
this  letter 


253 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


You  can  often 
work  this  angle 
to  advantage 


Here's  an  in- 
teresting 
opening 


Letters  that 
'^hold"  your 
interest 


Did  you  ever  stop  to  think  what  an  impor- 
tant part  your  collar  plays  in  the  sum 
total  of  your  appearance? 


Figure  it  out  for  yourself! 

If  the  washerwoman  comes  once  a  week — your 

home  is  hers  for  52  days  a  year. 

This  "opener,"  from  a  correspondence  school,  catches 
hold  of  your  interest  at  once: 

Have  you  ever  been  haunted  by  a  book? 

Have  you  ever  begun  a  story  and  allowed 
yourself  to  be  completely  concentrated 
upon  it,  only  to  be  interrupted,  to  lose 
the  book,  and  to  go  all  the  rest  of  the 
day  and  the  following  days  with  that  story 
and  those  characters  drifting  tauntingly 
in  and  out  of  your  thoughts,  giving  you 
that  unsatisfied  feeling  of  something 
ended  too  abruptly? 

The  ideal  "opener"  makes  it  hard  to  stop  reading. 
A  real  estate  dealer  started  one  of  his  letters  this  way: 

What  would  you  do  in  a  case  like  this? — 

A  widow  owns  a  property — to  be  exact,  two 
apartment  houses — rented  out  to  12  fami- 
lies. A  tenant  renting  one  of  the  flats 
and  paying  regularly  suddenly  fell  behind 
in  his  rent.   Ten  weeks  went  by,  and  no 
money  was  forthcoming.   The  owner  did  not 
want  to  turn  the  tenant  out,  for  that 
would  mean  a  certain  loss;  neither  did  she 
want  to  risk  losing  more  money. 

This  "opener,"  in  a  letter  from  a  man  with  overcoats 
to  sell  proved  timely: 

You  will  wake  up  some  brisk  morning  before 
long,  shivering — for  the  frost  king  is  on 
hand  with  advance  information  that  winter 
will  arrive  here  on  schedule  time,  if  not 
a  little  earlier  than  usual. 


254 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


Creating  a 
desire  for  your 
product 


A  fish  and  poultry  market  man  almost  made  his  pros- 
pects "taste"  his  delicious  fish  with  this  "opener": 

A  salt  mackerel,    freshened  to  your  taste, 
broiled  to  a  rich  brown  and  served  with 
the  juice  dripping  from  it,  with  melted 
butter,   is  a  breakfast  dish  that  will 
almost  melt  in  your  mouth. 

A  department  store  superintendent  used  this  "opener" 
to  good  advantage  in  a  shoe  letter: 

There's  a  cheery  little  pair  of  Challis 
walking  boots  waiting  for  you  at  the 
dealer's — made  for  YOU  to  YOUR  taste  and 
YOUR  style — just  the  thing  to  wear  with 
that  smart,   new  trotteur  gown  you've  had 
sent  home. 

This  "opener"  is  clever.  A  purely  clever  opening  is 
sometimes  dangerous,  but  this  one  succeeds  because  of 
the  fact  that  it  often  gets  a  laugh: 

When  I  was  a  boy  working  my  way  through 
school,   I  never  spoke  of  One  Dollar  "Bill." 
With  me  it  was  always  One  Dollar  "William," 
because  I  wasn't  on  good  enough  terms  with 
One  Dollar  to  feel   free  to  call  him  "Bill." 

The  following  are  the  opening  paragraphs  of  three     Similar  open- 


Prohably  most 
customers 
would  act 
on  this 


letters  used  by  a  health  specialist 

I  don't  dare  tell  you  the  full  truth — you 
would  not  believe  it.   I  wouldn't  either 
a  few  years  ago;  but  I  tried  my  plan  on 
myself  first — here  is  what  it  did  for  me. 


ings  often  win 
sympathy 


After  playing  bridge  the  other  night  some- 
one at  the  table  started  doing  card  tricks. 
You  know  what  a  bore  they  are.  So  pretty 
soon  I  said,  "I  can  do  a  trick  worth  all 
of  those";  and,  taking  a  pack  of  cards,  I 
tore  them  in  two. 


Soon  after  7  every  morning  I  get  to  my 
desk;  at  noon  go  across  the  street  for  a 


255 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


"Openers^*  that 
pave  the  way 


Do  these  para- 
graphs ring 
true  to  you? 


Here's  some- 
thing  to   watch 
for 


hurried  lunch;  along  toward  6  o'clock  I 
quit  work,  not  because  I  am  tired,  but 
because  I'm  hungry — I  am  NEVER  tired: 

Put  yourself  in  the  frame  of  mind  of  a  consumer 
who  has  used  a  coupon  attached  to  an  advertisement 
that  appears  frequently  in  publications  with  national 
circulations,  read  the  two  paragraphs  that  follow,  and 
then  decide  for  yourself  if  they  have  the  right  ring. 
Keep  in  mind,  as  you  pass  judgment,  that  the  paragraphs 
belong  in  a  form  letter  signed  with  the  name  of  the 
president  of  the  concern  back  of  the  national  advertising: 

Checking  over  my  personal  letter  file  today 
I  was  reminded  that  I  haven't  received  an 
answer  from  you  to  my  letter  of  recent 
date. 

Nor  do  I  seem  to  be  able  to  locate  your 
order  for  "Western  Pumps"  in  the  order 
department. 

These  two  paragraphs  come  from  a  letter  actually 
used  in  a  real  sales  letter  campaign  that  follows  up 
national  advertising  which  costs  money,  although  I  have 
disguised  the  name  of  the  product,  and  will  do  likewise 
in  quoting  from  the  other  letters  which  I  have  in  mind. 
The  paragraphs  quoted  above  start  the  second  letter  I 
received  after  mailing  in  a  coupon  embodied  in  an 
advertisement  issued  by  a  concern  located  in  California. 

When  I  used  the  coupon  I  think  I  was  what  you 
would  call  "a  live  prospect";  after  I  read  these  two  para- 
graphs I  am  quite  sure  that  I  changed  into  a  "dead 
prospect."  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  California 
firm  watches  its  orders  carefully.  Still,  I  do  not  beheve 
that  the  president  of  the  organization  himself  records  in 
his  "personal  letter  file"  every  form  letter  mailed. 

I  do  not  beheve  he  spends  his  time  checking  up  with 
his  order  department  every  name  to  which  his  mailing 
department  sends  a  form  letter.  And  I  do  not  think 
that  many  other  consumers  would  be  apt  to  beheve 
anything  of  the  sort,  either. 

The  fact  that  I  could  not  agree  with  the  two  para- 
graphs turned  my  attention  from  the  Cahfornia  concern's 
product.  Under  other  circumstances,  I  would  have 
ordered.     My  interest  could  have  been  easily  held  up 


256 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


by  a  paragraph  which  made  the  most  of  the  fact  that 
orders  were  being  watched  carefully  by  the  sales  man- 
ager on  the  Pacific  Coast,  but  which  did  not  attempt  to 
convince  me  that  the  president  had  taken  an  unexplain- 
able  interest  in  landing  my  order  himself. 

I  may  be  too  finicky;  still  the  impression  the  ultimate 
consumer  gets  from  a  sales  letter  is  the  impression  which 
counts.  The  letter  that  makes  the  biggest  hit  around 
the  home  office  may  not  ring  right  to  the  prospect — 
sometimes  the  home  office  has  been  studying  the  letter  so 
long  that  it  cannot  take  a  fresh  viewpoint  quickly.  A 
paragraph  hke  this,  for  example,  would  not  have  damp- 
ened my  interest  in  the  offers  of  the  California  concern: 

We  are  watching  our  April  mailings  care- 
fully.    There  is  no  record  of  an  order 
from  you. 

The  next  letter  from  this  firm  also  carried  the  name 
of  the  president.  It  again  assured  me  of  that  officiars 
interest  in  my  order  by  declaring: 

You'll  recall  that  I  had  the  pleasure,   a 
few  weeks  ago,   of  answering  your  inquiry 
for  a  detailed  description  of  my  new  1915 
French  Model  Washer  Western  Pumps — 
personally. 

I  am  sure  that  if  the  one  word  "personally"  had  been 
omitted,  this  letter  would  have  come  nearer  to  the  right 
ring — at  least  if  I  typify  the  average  consumer. 

I  received  only  one  more  letter  from  the  California 
organization.  It  was  based  on  the  "plot  idea,"  which 
is  apparently  rapidly  making  good  with  writers  of  sales 
letters.  A  live  plot  certainly  does  make  a  letter  inter- 
esting— providing  the  plot  takes  full  advantage  of  the 
situation  it  describes  and  has  the  right  ring. 

The  man  who  can  tell  how  a  plot  will  strike  the 
average  consumer  is  exceedingly  rare.  I  am  afraid  the 
writer  of  the  Cahfornia  concern's  letter  is  not  one  of 
them.  He  used  a  sound  enough  plot — Will  Preble, 
the  "stockkeeper  in  charge,"  while  taking  stock,  had 
discovered  300  "shop-worn"  Western  Pumps.  It  had 
then  been  decided  to  offer  the  whole  300  at  40%  off 
the  usual  fist  prices. 


Exaggeration  is 
seldom  advis- 
able 


This  is  un- 
doubtedly true 


When  not  to  use 
the  ^'personal" 
tone 


257 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Using  the 
'*plot  idea" 
effectively 


It's  the  little 
things  that 
count 


Letters  that 
defeat  their  own 
purpose 


So  Will  Preble  wrote  a  note  to  the  president  of  the 
concern.  He  mentioned  a  Mr.  Spaulding,  evidently  an 
executive  of  some  importance.  I  know  all  about  these 
little  details  because  the  writer  of  the  third  letter  in  this 
follow-up  series  enclosed  a  copy  of  Will  Preble's  note. 
Here's  the  way  it  read: 

Mr.   S.   R.    Stanwood: 

Mr.  Spaulding  told  me  to  report  to  you  how 
many  sample  pumps  we  have  on  hand  that  are 
shop-worn.  Here  is  the  list: 

(Signed)   WILL  PREBLE 
Stockkeeper  in  Charge 

Mr.  Preble's  note  listed  about  300  pumps  divided 
among  16  different  sizes.  It  also  gave  the  list  prices 
reduced  40%  and  mentioned  the  resulting  savings 
for  each  size.  The  plot  took  care  of  the  figures,  how- 
ever, for  the  following  note  appeared  at  the  end  of  Mr, 
Preble's  memorandum: 

We  added  the  figures  to  the  stockkeeper 's 
report  so  as  to  show  you  instantly  just 
how  much  you  could  save  by  taking  advantage 
of  this  opportune  offer. 

So  far,  so  good.  It  is  always  interesting  to  look 
behind  the  scenes,  and  Mr.  Preble's  note  to  his  boss 
served  its  purpose.  It  rang  soundly  enough  to  me  to 
hold  my  interest  in  the  letter's  plot,  although  it  did  occur 
to  me  that  16  sizes  was  a  fairly  wide  range  for  samples. 

I  also  noticed  that  the  particular  size  for  which  I  had 
inquired  was  not  Hsted,  despite  the  fact  that  the  first 
letter — the  one  in  which  the  president  was  pictured  as 
reaching  in  his  ''personal  letter  file"  for  my  order — had, 
by  means  of  a  fill-in,  specifically  mentioned  my  size. 

However,  the  right  ring  with  which  this  plot  started 
off  did  not  last  through  the  first  three  paragraphs  of  the 
letter  that  accompanied  Mr.  Preble's  list.  The  third 
and  fourth  paragraphs  of  this  letter  read: 

Therefore,  right  now,  at  the  very  opening 
of  the  pumping  season,  we  are  going  to  mail 
1,000  letters,  to  1,000  different  people, 
in  1,000  different  cities,  offering  these 


258 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


pumps  at   the  almost  unheard-of  discount  of 
40%  off  the  list  price. 

The  information  sheets  have  all  been  num- 
bered and  indexed.      The  index  cards  will 
be  destroyed  May  31.      Fill  out  and  mail   the 
information  sheet  today  if  you  want  any  of 
these  sample  pumps  at  40%  off  the  list 
price. 

I  recalled  that  the  plot  provided  only  1,000  letters 
for  selling  300  pumps.  I  found  on  inspection  that  the 
"information  sheet"  was,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  an  order. 
The  "3"  in  the  phrase  ''May  31"  had  been  filled  in  with 
pen  and  ink.  I  knew  that  there  are  less  than  1,000 
American  communities  over  the  10,000  mark,  so  the 
statement  that  the  letter  had  gone  to  "1,000  different 
cities"  set  me  to  thinking.  It  struck  me  as  very  unusual, 
to  say  the  least,  that  I  was  supposed  to  be  the  only  con- 
sumer in  the  largest  of  American  cities  to  receive  a  copy 
of  this  form  letter. 

Now,  this  plot  appealed  to  me,  taken  by  and  large. 
But  even  if  the  second  letter  had  not  drowned  my  inter- 
est in  the  proposition,  the  details  which  surrounded  the 
plot  would  have  done  so  very  quickly.  I  have  no  doubt 
but  that  Mr.  Preble's  stockkeeping  might  result  in  the 
discovery  of  300  samples;  but  the  other  particulars  of 
the  offer  failed — at  least  in  my  case — to  take  complete 
advantage  of  this  fairly  obvious  situation.  They  did 
not  ring  right  to  me. 

Why  could  not  the  phrase  "1,000  different  cities" 
have  been  spared?  Were  the  details  about  indexing  and 
numbering  necessary?  Why  had  pen  and  ink  been  used 
to  write  in  the  "3"?  Just  a  few  minor  changes  to  clear 
up  these  points,  and  this  third  letter  would  have  made 
the  most  of  its  plot,  I  think. 

The  three  paragraphs  following  are  taken  from  an- 
other follow-up  series  that  was  used  in  connection  with 
national  advertising: 

You're  lucky — there  is  a  special  treat  in 
store  for  you. 

I  have  just  returned  to  my  office  from  an 
inspection  of  the  factory,  where,  in  rum- 
maging around,    I   found  a  salesman's  trunk 


It  pays  to 
watch  for 
inconsistencies 


Why  this 
plotfailed 


A  case  of  "too 
much  informa- 
tion" 


259 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


//  handled 
right,  this  idea 
usually  works 


Here's  a  lack  of 
consistency 


Another  lost 
opportunity 


containing  15  cases,    ranging  in  all  the 
standard  sizes. 

These  cases  are  slightly  soiled  from  han- 
dling,  but  they  are  new  and  have  never  been 
used,   and — well,   you  are  in  business,   and 
it  is  needless  for  me  to  say  that  in 
building  these  cases  for  samples,    they  were 
naturally  made  by  our  skilled  mechanics, 
and  the  material  used  in  their  construction 
was  especially  selected. 

This  was  a  good-enough  plot,  too — though,  because 
of  its  elaborateness,  I  did  not  like  it  as  well  as  the  one 
used  by  the  man  in  California.  I  was  willing  to  accept 
it  as  reasonable,  though — until  it  occurred  to  me  that 
this  particular  product  is  made  in  over  15  standard 
sizes.  I  could  not  agree  that  a  sales  manager  would 
send  out  a  form  letter  to  a  national  list  when  he  had 
barely  one  article  in  each  size.  Then  I  noticed  the 
insinuation  that  samples  are  used  for  the  purpose  of  mis- 
guiding the  prospect  under  normal  circumstances.  Next 
I  ended  by  losing  whatever  interest  I  may  have  had  be- 
fore in  the  proposition. 

The  most  could  have  been  made  of  this  plot  very 
easily,  I  think.  A  moment's  calculation  would  probably 
have  related  the  stock  to  the  range  of  sizes.  Then  the 
statement  about  samples  might  have  been  handled  with 
a  better  understanding  of  actual  American  business 
methods.  This  letter — really  taken  from  one  of  the 
letters  used  by  the  Cahfornia  concern  previously  men- 
tioned— is  an  example: 

These  goods  are  samples,  made  with  all  the 
care  and  attention  to  detail  always  given 
samples. 

If  the  paragraphs  quoted  from  the  first  letter  from 
this  second  concern  did  not  ring  right  to  me,  a  stronger 
expression  is  needed  to  describe  the  effect  of  these — from 
the  next  letter: 

This  book  explains  how  we  have  virtually 
stolen  all  the  best  features  of  products 
similar  to  ours,  and  put  them  together, 
making  a  case  that  is  so  nearly  rustproof 


2m 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


that  we  would  be  doing  ourselves  an  injury       This  seems  a 
if  we  called  them  anything  but  rustproof  matter  of 

cases .  opinion 

Now  fill  out  the  information  sheet  and  put 
it  in  the  mail,   before  you  lay  this  aside, 
because  this  offer  will  be  made  to  someone 
else  in  your  neighborhood  if  we  do  not 
hear  from  you  soon. 

This  letter  would  have  had  a  better  ring,  as  far  as  I     Letters  that 
am  concerned,  if  the  first  of  these  paragraphs  had  been     kill  sales 
omitted  entirely  and  the  second  one  changed  perhaps  to 
read  something  like — 

Now  fill  out  the  information  sheet  and  put 
it  in  the  mail,   before  you  lay  this  aside, 
because  this  offer  is  limited  and  may 
never  be  made  again. 

Although  my  interest  in  this  proposition  had  been 
killed  already,  I  glanced  over  a  third  letter  that  came. 
It  did  not  have  a  healthier  ring  to  me  than  the  others 
because  of  these  paragraphs: 

You  have  been  overlooked.      In  writing  you 
recently  I  neglected  to  send  you  the 
enclosed  sample  of  linen. 

Don't  forget  to  address  your  reply  to  my 
personal  attention,   so  I  can  see  that  the 
special  discount  goes  through  all  0.   K. 

The  sample  interested  me  a  lot,  but  I  laughed  at  a     Youll  admit 
form  letter  written  to  cover  the  omission  of  an  important     this  is  far- 
enclosure.    I  was  not  willing  to  slight  the  sales  manager    fetched 
whose  name  appeared  on  this  letter  by  accepting  the 
letter's  assertion  that  he  gave  his  personal  attention  to 
the  details  connected  with  handling  orders. 

In  my  case,  this  letter  would  have  had  a  better  ring 
without  the  references  to  the  omission  of  the  sample 
and  the  sales  manager's  personal  interest  in  the  handling 
of  the  order.  A  request  to  try  and  tear  the  sample 
would  have  interested  me  as  an  ''opener." 

Here  is  how  one  concern  actually  gets  attention  for 
its  sample  and  still  manages  to  avoid  giving  its  letter 
any  hint  of  an  unsound  ring: 


261 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Many  pros- 
pects would  be 
interested 
in  this 


Samples 
usually  speak 
for  themselves 


Here's  a  weak 
spot 


I  wrote  you  yesterday,   but  as  you  have 
probably  not  had  time  to  answer  my  letter 
I  am  sending  you  samples  of  two  different 
makes  of  nuts  which  I  would  like  to  have 
you  examine. 

There  are  two  styles,   one  with  a  split  and 
the  other  with  a  tubular  stem.     If  you 
will  test  these  nuts  with  a  file  or  hammer 
you  will   find  that  the  nut  with  the  split 
stem  can  be  cut  away  or  dented  quite 
easily,   while  the  one  with  the  tubular 
stem  is  "diamond  hard."     You  will   find  it 
so  hard  that  you  can't  even  scratch  it 
with  a  file. 

The  nut  with  the  split  stem  has  been  uni- 
versally used  by  manufacturers  in  this 
country,   as  well  as  in  Europe,   and  has 
always  given  very  good  satisfaction,   but 
within  the  past  six  months  we  have  found 
by  experiments  in  our  testing  plant  and  in 
actual  service  on  paved  streets  and  country 
roads,    that  the  nut  with  the  tubular  stem 
will  stand  nearly  twice  as  much  wear. 

The  second  letter  used  in  connection  with  the  follow- 
up  for  a  third  advertisement  to  which  I  replied  also 
referred  to  a  "mistake."  This  time  the  name  of  the 
manager  of  the  concern  signed  the  letter — and  it  was 
explained  that  he  had  neglected  to  specify  the  expiration 
of  a  "special  offer."  This  situation  was  combined  with 
an  elaborate  plot  involving  the  practicability  of  two 
different  types  of  rivets. 

Samples  of  the  rivets  were  enclosed.  They  interested 
me  and  I  tested  them  with  a  knife.  But  the  "mistake" 
about  the  expiration  date  did  not  have  the  right  ring. 
Then  I  noticed  that  only  25  people  in  America  were  sup- 
posed to  have  received  the  "special  offer" — still  a  form 
letter  had  been  used  to  announce  it.  It  was  also  stated 
that  all  but  six  of  the  25  had  purchased.  So  this  second 
elaborated  form  letter  was  supposedly  written  for  six 
prospects — six  prospects  and  no  more.  The  plot  had  a 
good  background — but  the  most  had  not  been  made  of  it, 
in  my  opinion.    I  found  my  interest  in  the  proposition 


262 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


dwindling — finally  it  ceased  absolutely.  I  never  ordered. 
Here  are  the  paragraphs  in  this  letter  that  did  not  ring 
true  to  me: 

When  I  wrote  you  recently  making  the 
special  offer  to  build  up  for  you  a  pair 
or  full  set  of  Velver  Wheels,  using  the 
hand-tempered  steel  rivets  in  conjunction 
with  our  improved  spoke,  I  overlooked  set- 
ting a  date  for  the  expiration  of  my  offer. 

I  am  compelled  to  limit  the  time  of  this 
offer,  as  I  find  by  referring  to  our  files 
that  we  have  received  replies  from  all  but 
six  of  the  25  parties  to  whom  I  made  the 
special  offer.  Several  of  these  people 
have  made  request  for  a  complete  set  of 
wheels  with  the  tempered  rivets,  and  I  am 
afraid  our  supply  will  run  short. 

With  this  large  number  of  requests  for 
shipment  I  will  be  able  to  decide  defi- 
nitely the  question  which  I  wanted 
answered.  I  am  now  satisfied  that  it  will 
pay  us  to  use  the  hand-tempered  rivets 
exclusively  and  increase  our  selling  price 
enough  to  pay  for  the  better  material. 

But  in  view  of  the  fact  that  I  failed  to 
say  anything  about  this  time  limit  in  my 
former  letter,  and  as  I  do  not  wish  to  cut 
off  any  opportunity  extended  to  you  with- 
out giving  you  time  to  take  advantage  of 
it,  I  will  agree  to  hold  this  offer  open 
for  you  15  days  from  the  date  of  this 
letter,  which  should  give  you  ample  time 
to  reply  by  mail. 

However,  rather  than  cause  you  to  lose  this 
opportunity  on  account  of  my  oversight, 
you  may  wire  us  tke  order  at  our  expense 
and  I  will  see  that  it  is  entered  for 
shipment  before  the  expiration  of  the  time 
set.  I  have  asked  my  stenographer  to  en- 
close a  telegraph  blank  which  has  been 
filled  out  for  your  convenience. 


Be  sure  your 
letters  ring  true 


Points  to  watch 
in  writing 
sales  letters 


Suiting  the 
style  to  the 
purpose 


263 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Perhaps  this 
could  be  im- 
proved 


There's  nothing 
unreasonable  in 
this  letter 


An  old  idea  but 
a  good  one 


I  trust  that  I  have  explained  fully  my 
reason  for  writing  you  at  this  time,    for, 
as  I  have  stated  above,   I  do  not  want  you 
to  feel  that  I  am  unreasonable  in  cutting 
off  any  advantage  which  I  have  extended  to 
you.     I  would  rather  have  you  wire  the 
order  at  our  expense  than  cause  you  to  lose 
this  opportunity  on  account  of  my  over- 
sight. 

To  my  way  of  looking  at  it,  these  paragraphs  would 
have  had  a  sounder  ring  if  changed  over  to  take  an  angle 
somewhat  like  this: 

You  will  remember  I  wrote  you  a  short  time 
back  about  using  hand-tempered  rivets  in 
our  wheels — I  even  sent  you  a  sample  of  the 
hand  rivets   (the  hand-tempered  ones),   and  a 
sample  of  the  soft  rivets. 

So  many  have  accepted  my  offer  to  make  up 
wheels  with  the  hand-tempered  rivets  that 
I  know  there  is  a  market  for  the  hand- 
tempered  product.      Consumers  evidently 
know  the  best  when  they  see  it  and  are 
willing  to  invest  for  long  service. 

I  am  going  to  fill  the  orders  for  wheels 
with  the  hand-tempered  rivets  at  once,   and 
keep  right  on  making  more.      I  want  as  many 
orders  as  possible  to  start  in  on.     This 
gives  you  an  unusual  opportunity:    if  you 
will  place  an  order  within  15  days,    I  will 
fill  it  at  the  special  price  for  which  I 
offered  to  make  up  a  few  hand-tempered 
riveted  wheels.      Wire  your  order  at  my 
expense,    if  you  like.      Fifteen  days  beforo 
the  dead  line,   however — no  more. 

The  last  letter  from  the  manager  with  the  problem 
about  rivets,  mustered  into  service  the  apparently 
popular  plot  based  on  the  discovery  of  a  number  of 
samples.  As  usual,  the  stockkeeper  made  the  discovery. 
"Our  stockkeeper  has  just  called  my  attention  to  several 
pairs  of  wheels  in  standard  sizes,  which  have  been  used  for 
exhibition  purposes." 


264 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


This  plot  still  appealed  to  me.    But  for  the  third  time  This  might 

I  felt  that  the  most  had  not  been  made  of  it  after  I  leave  room 

finished  reading  the  letter.    This  paragraph  in  particular  for  doubt 
appeared  to  me  to  have  an  unsound  ring: 

There  are  only  two  pairs  of  these  wheels  in 
each  of  the  standard  sizes,   and  if  the 
wheels  on  your  engine  are  standard,   which 
they  undoubtedly  are,   this  is  a  bargain 
for  you. 

Two  pairs  in  each  standard  size  would  mean  only 
about  32  pairs  in  all.  It  struck  me  as  unusual  that 
samples  would  be  made  in  a  full  range  of  sizes  and  that  an 
elaborate  form  letter  would  be  sent  out  nationally  to  sell 
32  pairs  of  wheels. 

The  order  blank  enclosed  with  this  letter  had  "special 
sample  wheels — see  Mr.  Gatler"  printed  over  its  face  in 
red — all  for  a  sale  of  only  32  pairs  of  wheels,  according 
to  what  the  letter  would  have  you  believe. 

I  have  a  feehng  that  other  men  who  sell  through  the     This  letter 
mails  attempt  to  avoid  arousing  just  such  doubts.     In     might  have 
this  instance,  a  paragraph  of  this  sort  might  have  turned     helped 
the  trick: 

We  have  32  pairs  of  these  sample  wheels.     I 
want  to  sell  them  quickly,   so  I  am  mailing 
out  a  regular  form  letter  to  our  entire 
list  about  the  proposition — therefore,  you 
will  have  to  act  quickly.     The  special 
order  blank  enclosed  will  distinguish  all 
orders  from  this  mailing,   so  you  need  not 
bother  to  specify  samples.     It  is  strictly 
a  case  of  first  come,    first  served,   as  our 
samples  always  go  fast. 

In   several   additional   sales   letters   which    I    have     Little  things 
received  lately  I  notice  phrases  that  make  the  entire     that  are  im- 
letters  ring  unsoundly  to  me.     These  letters  are  from    portant,  too 
real  estate  concerns,  wholesalers,  manufacturers,  retailers, 
and  others — in  fact,  from  an  unusually  representative  Hst. 
To  my  way  of  thinking,  a  good  many  of  them  fail  to 
make  the  most  of  their  opportunities  because  they  use 
those  httle  phrases  with  an  unsatisfactory  ring.     Here 
are  three  typical  phrases  selected  at  random: 


265 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Why  some 
letters  don't 
*'putit  over' 


One  man's 
analysis 


This  is  adapt- 
able in  other 
ways 


If  you  do  not  accept  this  special  adver- 
tising offer — won't  you  please  notify  me 
immediately  so  I  can  make  the  offer  to 
someone  else  in  your  territory? 


Fearing  that  our  former  letter  of  last  week 
did  not  reach  you,   we  are  writing  again. 


This  letter  contains  a  special  and  personal 
offer  to  you. 

Now  I  may  be  all  wrong.  These  letters  which  I  have 
selected  from  among  those  I  have  received  within  the 
last  few  months  may  be  winners. 

Still  I  am  simply  reporting  their  effect  on  one  con- 
sumer. I  did  not  make  any  investigation — all  the  letters 
I  have  mentioned  either  came  to  me  as  a  result  of  my 
natural  interest  in  certain  goods  I  thought  of  purchasing 
or  because  some  concern  used  a  maihng  list  that  hap" 
pened  to  contain  my  name. 

So  I  think  this  is  a  rather  fair  test  of  how  some 
letters  in  everyday  use  impress  an  average  consumer. 
I  am  not  saying  that  even  a  majority  of  the  letters  in  use 
today  ring  the  way  those  which  I  have  selected  do — 
but  you  might  be  sm-prised  if  I  mentioned  by  name 
some  of  the  houses  from  whose  letters  I  have  quoted. 

Since  it  is  admittedly  difficult  to  sense  every  man's 
— every  consumer's,  I  mean — reaction  to  a  letter,  a  phrase 
or  a  paragraph,  is  it  not  worth  the  trouble  to  go  over 
letters  every  now  and  then  to  make  sure  that  they  are 
making  the  most  of  their  offers,  ringing  right  all  the  time? 
We  often  acknowledge  as  a  genius  the  man  who  writes  a 
play  with  an  interesting  and  realistic  plot.  Letters  are 
demanding,  more  and  more  generally,  plots  both  interest- 
ing and  realistic.  Why  not  test  the  work  of  the  writers 
of  letters  as  carefully  as  we  are  accustomed  to  test  the 
work  of  the  playwrights — and  give  them  corresponding 
credit  when  they  succeed? 

About  two  years  ago  I  received  several  letters  from  a 
concern  which  sells  an  encyclopedia.  The  uniform  and 
distinctive  complimentary  close  they  used  made  a  lasting 
impression  on  my  mind. 

Instead  of  ''Yours  truly,"  or  "Very  truly  yours," 
they  closed  with  this  phrase:     "Perpetually  yours  for 


266 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


the  Perfect  Reference  System."  This  was  neatly  typed 
in  two  short  Hnes.  The  phrase  stood  out  distinct  from 
the  rest  of  the  letter,  strengthening  it  and  giving  it  a 
certain  personality.  These  were  not  sales  letters,  but 
were  concerned  with  a  subject  entirely  foreign  to  selling. 

Since  then  I  have  taken  particular  pains  to  notice 
how  other  men  close  their  letters.  I  save  most  of  the 
circular  letters  that  come  to  my  desk  and  study  them 
with  a  good  deal  of  care.  From  my  collection  I  took 
500  letters,  each  of  which  was  a  fair,  even  a  good,  example 
of  written  salesmanship. 

I  inventoried  these  letters  and  classified  them  accord- 
ing to  the  kinds  of  closers  used.  The  following  are  the 
results  I  found: 

135,  or  27%,  closed  with  "Yours  very  truly" 
60,  or  12%,  closed  with  ''Sincerely  yours" 
54,  or  11%,  closed  with  "Yours  truly" 
54,  or  11%,  closed  with  "Cordially  yours" 
54,  or  11%,  closed  with  "Very  truly  yours" 
26,  or    5%,  closed  with  "Yours  respectfully" 
21,  or    4%,  closed  with  " Respectfullj^  yours" 
21,  or    4%,  closed  with  "Yours  sincerely" 
5,  or    1%,  closed  with  "Your  sincere  friend*' 
5,  or    1%,  closed  with  "Very  truly" 
5,  or    1%,  closed  with  "Very  sincerely  yours" 

In  other  words,  out  of  five  hundred  letters,  440 — or 
88% — used  the  stock  phrases  when  the  same  space  might 
have  been  employed  to  deliver  a  lively  message  of  service 
or  good  will,  or  to  put  across  a  trademark  or  slogan. 
Only  12%  utilized  the  space  to  advantage. 

Of  those  who  employed  the  space  to  the  best  possible 
advantage,  the  following  are  perhaps  some  of  the  most 
interesting  phrases  used: 

"Yours  for  Tempting  Typography":  a  printer. 

"Yours  for  Less  Ledger  Labor":  a  manufacturer  of 
an  automobile  ledger. 

"Advertisingly  yours":    an  advertising  man. 

"  Yours  at  the  Receiver  " :  a  grocer  soliciting  telephone 
orders. 

"Yours  for  Efficiency  and  Economy":  an  adding 
machine  manufacturer. 

"Yours  on  the  Jump":    a  real  estate  man. 


An  interesting 
classification 


Only  12%  saw 
the  opportunity 


There's  nothing 

stereotyped 

here 


267 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


It's  often  ihe  "Yours  for  Clean  Cylinders  and  a  Fast  Engine": 

last  word  that        sl  manufacturer  of  a  device  for  removing  carbon. 
counts  "Yours  for  Stickers  that  Stick":    a  manufacturer  of 

gummed  stickers. 

I  make  it  my  business  to  read  all  the  circular  letters 
that  come  into  my  office.  My  piupose  is  to  get  an  idea 
of  how  other  men  handle  their  correspondence,  for  I 
believe  that  I  can  often  use  their  plans  to  good  advan- 
tage to  improve  my  own  letters. 

A  point  of  special  interest  to  me  is  the  variety  of  the 
ways  by  means  of  which  different  men  strive  to  get 
action.  Usually,  in  the  well-planned  letters,  the  final 
paragraph  is  in  the  nature  of  a  "chncher,"  the  object  of 
which  is  to  sum  up  the  proposition  so  convincingly  that 
the  reader  will  find  it  hard  to  say  "no,"  or  to  put  it  aside 
for  future  consideration. 
Sales  letters  Very  often  some  of  the  most  successful  of  these  closing 

that  "clinch"  paragraphs  leave  nothing  to  the  reader.  They  tell  him 
specifically  what  to  do,  how  to  do  it,  and  impress  upon 
him  that  the  time  to  do  it  is  the  present.  Some  writers, 
in  order  to  get  action,  dwell  upon  the  advantages 
lost  by  delay.  Others  offer  inducements  for  immediate 
action.  Some  cut  off  retreat  by  making  delay  reflect  back 
on  the  prospect.  Perhaps,  however,  the  most  effective 
plan  is  the  one  that  makes  it  so  very  easy  to  order  that 
it  is  almost  impossible  to  resist. 

In  the  course  of  my  study  I  have  made  a  collection  of 
some  of  the  most  interesting  "closers"  I  have  come 
across,  and  I  will  present  a  few  of  the  most  striking  ones. 
Here,  for  instance,  is  the  final  paragraph  from  a  letter 
that  was  sent  to  me  by  a  Boston  pubhsher,  who  wished 
me  to  order  a  book : 

Send  for  it  before  you  lay  this  letter 
aside.      There's  nothing  to  write — nothing 
to  sign.      It's  all  done  for  you.      Simply 
put  the  enclosed  card  in  the  envelop, 
tuck  in  a  $2  bill  or  your  check — and  mail. 

All  obstacles  My  immediate  impulse  was  to  follow  the  directions 

are  removed  — because  they  were  so  simple  and  easy,  and  because  I 

had  been  "sold"  on  the  worth  of  the  book  in  the  previous 

paragraphs.    Below  is  another  "closer"  where  the  same 

idea  of  making  it  easy  to  order  is  worked  out.    This  letter 


268 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


was  sent  to  printers  by  a  concern  which  has  inks  to  sell.     This  might 
With   the   letter  came   several   conveniently  addressed     help  to  get 
postals — or  "smear  cards,"  as  they  are  sometimes  called,     the  order 

Right  now,    today,    this  very  minute,   per- 
haps you  need  a  color  for  some  special  job. 
Grab  one  of  the  smear  cards,   put  on  that 
gob  of  ink,   with  a  sample  of  the  stock, 
and  see  how  quickly  and  satisfactorily  we 
will  handle  this  trial  order!      You'll  be 
more  than  gratified — you'll  be  delighted! 

BETTER  GET  IT  OFF  IN  THE  VERY  NEXT  iVIAIL! 

Here  is  still  another  concern's  variation  of  the  "make 
it  easy  to  order"  idea: 

It  isn't  necessary  to  write  a  letter;   just       Another  inter- 
write  across  the  face  of  this  letter,    "I  esting  "closer" 

accept  this  trial  order,"  sign  your  name 
and  send  the  sheet  back  to  us  in  the 
enclosed  envelop. 

And  still  again,  the  closing  paragraph  of  a  two-page 
letter,  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  effective  ever  mailed 
by  a  well-known  concern  in  the  East,  reads  as  follows: 

SEND  YOUR  $2  FOR  THIS  BOOK  TODAY!      It  is 
beautifully  bound  in  silk,   gold-leaf  let- 
tered,  232  pages,    illustrated,   mailed  post- 
age prepaid  for  this  amount.      DON'T  WAIT — 
use  pencil  in  filling  out  order  blank  if 
pen  and  ink  are  not  handy.      Remember,   on 
the  Great  Clock  of  Time  there's  but  ONE 
word:      "NOW!" 

Perhaps  the  homely  suggestion  about  using  a  pencil     This  little  sug- 
is  the  most  effective  touch  in  this  paragraph.  gestion  may 

Below  are  a  few  more  "closers"  that  have  seemed  to     work  for  you 
me  particularly  good.    They  have — in  every  case — been 
taken  from  letters  that  pulled  unusually  well. 

Why  not  mail  this  postal  while  the 
thought's  fresh  in  your  mind?     Whirl   round 
in  your  office  chair  and  do  it  NOW  — 'tis 
a  turn  for  the  BETTER! 


269 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


Paragraphs 
that  have 
proved  out 


The  point  to 
emphasize 


These  form 
letters  brought 
the  business 


Just  wrap  a  dollar  bill  in  this  le'tter  at 
our  risk,  and  mail  at  once  to  be  sure  it 
will  reach  us  by  next  Wednesday.  Don't 
bother  writing  a  letter;  you  may  be  busy. 
The  address  above  will  tell  us  that  the 
remittance  is  from  you. 


Don't  let  this  letter  become  covered  up  on 
your  desk.  Attend  to  this  matter  now,  or 
instruct  your  advertising  agent  to  reserve 
space  for  you,  and  get  a  big  bargain. 

Here  is  the  close  of  a  letter,  which  is  claimed  to 
have  brought  a  steady  reply  average  of  45%: 

An  inquiry  commits  you  to  nothing,  obli- 
gates you  to  nothing.  The  outcome  of  that 
inquiry  may  mean  to  you  everything.  Every- 
thing that  makes  life  worth  while — 
character,  wealth,  happiness. 

Simply  sign  and  return  enclosed  postal 
card.   Today — NOW! 

A  western  collection  agency  sent  out  a  series  of  four 
letters.  Each  letter  was  individually  typewritten  and 
signed  and  resulted  in  the  collection  of  several  thousand 
dollars.  The  first  three  ended,  "Yours  for  a  Live  Wire 
Collection  Service";  the  fourth  ended,  "Persistently 
yours."     Two  of  the  "closers"  used  were  as  follows: 

From  every  satisfied  client  I  secure 
others,   and  for  that  reason,    if  for  no 
other,   you  may  be  assured  of  an  intelli- 
gent,  conscientious  service. 

Send  in  your  statements  and  let  me  get 
busy .  

OUR  PERSISTENCY  plus  YOUR  BAD  ACCOUNTS 
means  DOLLARS  for  you. 

Start  1919  with  a  clean  sheet.     The  sooner 
you  send  US  your  accounts,    the  sooner  we 
will  send  YOU  a  check,   so 

SEND  YOUR  ACCOUNTS  TODAY. 


270 


PROVED  METHODS  THAT  PAY 


A  middle-western  printing  concern  has  brought  sug- 
gestions for  the  immediate  use  of  the  telephone  as  the 
means  of  transmitting  orders  into  many  of  its  'closers." 
Here  are  three  samples: 

Our  evidence  is  all   ready,   our  typesetters 
at  attention,    our  pressmen  alert,   our 
telephone  L-I-S-T-E-N-I-N-G    ! 


When  you  take  up  the  receiver  and  call  our 

number,   you're  on  the  direct  wire  to 

lucrative  printing  that  pays  real  divi- 
dends:     MAIN  3600. 


How  the  tele- 
phone can  help 


If  you've  a  print-job  hanging  around, 
there's  a  phone  at  your  elbow. 

And  Johnson's  at  the  other  end — 

L-I-S-T-E-N-I-N-G . 

A  special  inducement  for  immediate  action  is  some- 
times effective.  The  following,  for  instance,  is  a  "closer" 
that  offers  such  an  inducement: 

Just  to  hand  you  a  bit  of  a  bribe  right  on 
the  face  of  it,   I'll  do  THIS:    If  you'll 
reach  right  over,   grab  the  pen  and  make 
that  check  payable  to  Henderson  right  now, 

I'LL  PUT  YOU  DOWN  FOR  13  SETS  INSTEAD  OF 
12  AT  THE  SAME  PRICE! 

Takes  just  a  minute  to  fix  the  whole 
thing — THIS  MINUTE  will  do. 

A  genuine  argument  can  often  be  summed  up  into 
an  effective  ''closer."  The  following  example,  for 
instance,  is  taken  from  a  two-page  follow-up  letter  used 
by  a  New  York  concern.  The  letter  has  to  take  the 
difficult  position  of  asking  for  a  $15  remittance.  But  it 
pictures  the  benefits  that  may  be  derived  from  the  ex- 
penditure in  such  a  way  that — by  comparison — the 
sum  seems  small: 


This  plan  often 
gets  results 


A  novel  way  of 
requesting  a 
remittance 


271 


THE  AUTOMATIC  LETTER  WRITER 


This  idea  might  Now,    think  THIS;    think  it  hard — think  it 

be  used  in  harder  than  anything  you  ever  thought  in 

other  ways  your  life:     You  are  preparing  to  increase 

your  present  income  10  to  20  times  what  it 
is  this  very  minute  by  remitting  $15  to  me 
by  the  next  mail  that  leaves  your  city! 

Make  this  move  at  ONCE,   and  in  a  very 
little  while  the  daily  stream  of  cash 
remittances  will  flock  to  you  in  every  mail 
from  cities,    towns,    and  villages  every- 
where,  your  profits  piling  up  and  bringing 
you  and  yours  all  those  new  and  wonderful, 
wanted,   waited  and  wished-for  luxuries  of 
life,    that  priceless  independence  that 
enables  you  to  bid  your  pay-check  pals 
good-by  forever. 

Here  is  one  that  gets  "under  the  skin"  of  the  doubtful 
prospect  by  asking  simply  for  questions  instead  of  for 
an  enrolment.  It  has  a  frank,  friendly  tone  that  imme- 
diately appeals  to  the  prospective  purchaser: 

An  effective  I  know  what  this  course  will  mean  to  you. 

closer  I  know  what  it  will  qualify  you  to  do. 

Perhaps  you  cannot  see  it  now,   but  remem- 
ber— ^70%  of  my  best  men — of  my  most  enthu- 
siastic pupils — were  once  on  the  fence  in 
this  matter  just  as  you  are  today — ^70%, 
mind  you — and  every  one  is  now  a  satisfied 
student.     I  am  sure  it  will  prove  true  in 
your  case  if  you  will  make  the  start.     Will 
you  not  do  so,   and  do  so  now?     At  least 
write  me  and  tell  me  frankly  why  it  is  you 
are  hesitating. 

A  final  word  about  ''closers."  The  man  who  writes 
letters  cannot  expect,  of  course,  that  a  strong  appeal 
in  his  final  paragraph  will  win  favorable  action  from 
a  prospect  solely  on  its  own  merits  and  in  spite  of 
faults  in  the  rest  of  the  letter.  But  he  should  recognize, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  a  poor  ''closer"  may  spoil  an 
otherwise  good  letter.  The  purpose  of  the  "closer"  is  to 
focus  the  prospect's  mind,  while  he  still  has  the  matter 
clearly  in  his  thoughts,  on  the  idea  of  doing  at  once  what 
the  writer  of  the  letter  wants  him  to  do. 


272 


APPENDIX 


REMEMBER 

Remember  that  the  policies  and  rules  gathered  together  here 
are  assembled  merely  to  suggest  to  you  how  to  build  up  your 
own  office  manual  for  stenographers  and  typists.  Just  work 
out  your  own  office  manual  to  fit  your  business  with  the  aid 
of  the  ideas  underlying  the  examples  given  here — the  result 
may  be  three  pages  or  three  hundred — the  size  does  not 
matter,  but  standardization  does  matter,  and  matters  in  con- 
cerns of  all  sizes  and  kinds. 

In  business  generally  there  is  nearly  always  some  difficulty 
in  getting  those  active  in  the  work  to  see  the  advisability 
of  describing  completely  its  various  steps.  They  themselves 
know  them  thoroughly,  and  ask:   "What  is  the  use  of  going  to 
the  trouble  of  putting  it  in  writing?" 

When,  however,  one  of  these  human  encyclopedias  suddenly 
decides  to  seek  his  fortunes  elsewhere,  or  otherwise  lets  go 
the  reins,  the  need  of  a  manual  is  usually  keenly  felt. 
One  problem  after  another  comes  up,  the  proper  disposal  of 
which  is  in  doubt.  Often  a  bit  of  routine  work  will  go  for- 
ward for  weeks  or  even  months  with  an  important  part  miss- 
ing. And  nowhere  is  the  need  for  a  standard  practice  more 
keenly  felt  than  in  the  correspondence  work. 

For  the  benefit  of  all  new  employees,  definite  rules  should 
be  thoroughly  understood  and  written  in  a  style  easy  to 
read.  Such  a  set  of  rules  will  help  to  avoid  many  misunder- 
standings. 


275 


INTRODUCTION 

In  almost  every  company  there  is  great  need  for  improve- 
ment in  correspondence.   One  of  the  most  valuable  ways  of 
correcting  correspondence  and  training  workers  in  the  writ- 
ing of  letters  which  will  be  uniformly  good  is  a  standard 
correspondence  manual. 

Outlined  on  pages  278  to  293  is  a  sample  manual.   It  is 
merely  in  skeleton  form  and  may  be  enlarged  upon,  abbrevi- 
ated, or  copied  exactly  by  the  staff  members,  according  to 
circumstances.  In  places  where  examples  of  the  right  and 
wrong  way  of  writing  letters  are  shown  it  is  expected  that 
all  the  staff  members  will,  if  possible,  find  such  examples 
in  the  letters  of  the  correspondents,  which  will  tend  to 
make  the  manual  more  personally  applicable  than  it  would  be 
otherwise. 

All  correspondents  should  help  in  the  further  compilation 
of  this  manual. 

There  should  be  one  copy  of  the  manual  for  every  person  in 
the  company  who  writes  letters,  or  has  to  dictate  letters. 
If  the  number  is  large,  a  good  way  is  to  mimeograph,  while 
smaller  numbers  can  be  duplicated  or  made  by  the  carbon 
process.  The  manual  should  be  made  in  looseleaf  form  so 
that  it  can  be  added  to,  or  corrected,  very  readily. 


277 


THE  OFFICE  MANUAL 

THE  POLICY  OF  THE  COMPANY 

We  expect  every  correspondent  to  understand  thoroughly, 
not  only  the  letter,  but  the  spirit  of  our  policy. 
This  policy  is: 

We  aim  to  produce  honest,  well-made  articles,  to 
back  these  articles  with  our  guarantee,  to  deal 
honestly,  fairly,  and  courteously  with  our  custom- 
ers and,  above  all,  render  to  them  that  service  to 
which  they  are  entitled. 

We  are  judged  by  our  letters.  The  percentage  of  cus- 
tomers who  meet  us  face  to  face  in  our  office  is  very 
small  compared  to  those  with  whom  we  do  business  by 
correspondence. 

The  correspondent  is  at  a  disadvantage  as  compared  with 
the  salesman.  If  the  salesman  says  something  which  he 
discovers  by  looking  into  the  customer's  eye  is  not 
being  well  received,  he  can  immediately  revise  his 
remark  and  repair  any  possible  damage  that  may  have  been 
done.  The  correspondent  does  not  have  this  advantage. 
What  he  says  on  paper  remains  a  permanent  record.   The 
impression  that  the  customer  gets  when  reading  the 
letter  is  sometimes  indelible. 

For  every  letter  you  write  the  company  must  bear  the 
responsibility.  To  the  reader,  you  are  the  company. 
What  you  say  may  affect  very  seriously  the  customer's 
opinion  of  us.  The  more  closely  you  follow  our  policy, 
the  more  you  will  increase  our  good  will.  The  building 
of  good  will  means  more  business  and  more  business  means 
larger  opportunity. 

278 


Learn  our  policy.  See  that  nothing  you  say  in  your 
letters  is  capable  of  a  wrong  conception. 


SPECIAL  INSTRUCTIONS 

Never  forget  that  your  letters  represent  this  company. 
When  you  write  a  business  letter  you  are  the  company. 
Be  sure  it  is  a  good  letter. 

Never  be  discourteous.  You  can  be  concise  without  being 
brusk;  brief  without  being  short. 

Don't  "spread  it  on  too  thick"  in  an  effort  at  polite- 
ness. Real  courtesy  is  easily  recognized;  so  is  "soft 
soap." 

Never  be  inaccurate.  Question  every  statement  you  make, 
no  matter  how  commonplace.  If  it  is  not  exact,  don't 
use  it.  Make  accuracy  a  habit. 

Remember  that  every  really  successful  business  is  built 
on  confidence;  and  confidence  is  based  on  honesty. 
Inexactness  may  differ  from  dishonesty,  but  it  often 
works  the  same  result. 

Never  be  servile.  We  try  to  serve  our  customers,  but 
in  a  dignified,  self-respecting  way. 

Always  try  to  make  a  friend  of  the  person  you  are 
writing  to.  Friendliness  makes  confidence,  and  con- 
fidence makes  sales.  In  one  sense,  therefore,  all  your 
letters  are  "sales"  letters. 

Try  not  to  be  self-conscious  in  letters.  Cultivate  the 
art  of  "talking"  to  your  man.  If  you  had  him  across  the 
desk  you  could  convince  him;  imagine  him  there  when 
you  dictate. 

Always  remember  that  many  persons  know  us  only  through 
letters.  They  may  think  of  us  as  an  impersonal  business 
organization — cold-blooded,  unfriendly.  Try  to  dispel 

279 


this  feeling.  Be  as  friendly  as  possible.  Convince 
these  people  that  we  are  interested  in  their  business, 
ready  to  serve  them,  and  eager  to  help  them  in  making 
their  business  grow,  or  to  see  that  they  get  the  best 
value  possible  for  their  money. 


THE  READER 


Do  not  handle  the  letters  which  come  into  your  posses- 
sion as  so  many  pieces  of  paper  to  be  disposed  of 
summarily.  Always  remember  that  the  letter  is  a  repre- 
sentation of  a  person.  Try  to  picture  this  person  in 
your  mind.  See  if  you  can  produce  a  favorable  impres- 
sion upon  the  person  that  you  have  in  your  mind. 

If  the  person  writes  us  a  scurrilous  letter  and  loses 
his  temper,  do  not  think  that  you  are  improving  the 
situation  by  rushing  to  the  defense  of  the  company  and 
answering  Ijim  in  his  own  style.   The  aim  of  business 
letter  writing  is  to  produce  good  will  and  increase 
business.  You  cannot  do  this  by  quarreling,  nor  yet 
by  an  effort  to  "get  even"  with  satirical  remarks. 

The  tone  of  your  letter  should  always  be  friendly  and 
there  should  be  no  possibility  of  a  misunderstanding. 
Choose  your  words,  sentences,  and  paragraphs  carefully. 
A  letter  must  be  clear,  courteous,  and  concise.  If  it 
is  conversational  in  tone,  you  will  get  your  message 
home  much  more  quickly  than  if  you  use  a  stereotyped, 
stilted  form  of  writing. 


CLEARNESS 


If  you  do  not  know  exactly  what  you  are  going  to  say, 
when  you  start  to  dictate  a  letter,  do  not  say  anything. 

Don't  write  at  all  unless  you  have  something  to  say; 
and  having  said  it,  stop. 

Don't  give  reasons  or  explanations  unless  they  are 
called  for. 

280 


Don't  write  anything  in  a  perfunctory  way,  but  remember 
always  that  each  letter  or  indorsement  should  bear  the 
impress  of  the  writer's  dignity,  courtesy,  and 
intelligence. 

Don't  hesitate  to  say  "no"  if  that  is  the  proper  answer; 
and  having  said  it,  don't  attempt  to  suggest  an  alter- 
native aimed  to  circumvent  your  own  "no." 

Don't  discuss  people;  discuss  things. 

Don't  write  anything  quarrelsome  (it  would  probably  not 

be  signed) . 

Don't  get  excited;  or  if  you  do,  don't  record  the  fact 
on  paper. 

Don't  use  long  words  when  they  can  be  avoided  (and  they 
generally  can) . 

Don't  say  "shall,"  or  "must,"  or  "should,"  if  you  mean 
"will";  "verbal"  when  you  mean  "oral";  "amount"  when 
you  mean  "quantity";  "in  reference"  when  you  mean  "with 
reference";  "in  accord"  when  you  mean  "in  accordance"; 
"hardly"  when  you  mean  "scarcely";  "with  the  view  of" 
when  you  mean  "with  a  view  to." 

The  first  principle  in  letter  writing  is  to  deliver 
your  message.  It  is  not  enough  that  this  message  should 
get  on  the  desk  of  the  reader,  nor  is  it  sufficient  to 
have  it  read.  It  must  be  understood  at  once. 

fo  force  a  reader  to  study  our  letter  in  order  to 
understand  what  is  meant,  is  to  add  a  burden  which  the 
reader  should  not  have  to  carry.  Misunderstanding  ends 
in  loss  of  business.  Misunderstanding  increases  your 
work.  To  have  to  write  several  times  on  the  same 
subject  in  order  to  make  your  meaning  clear  is  a  con- 
fession of  inefficiency  upon  the  part  of  the  corre- 
spondent. 

Avoid  long  sentences.  Choose  the  moderately  long 
sentences  wherever  it  is  possible. 

281 


The  greatest  writers  use  the  simplest  English.  The 
simple  words  used  in  ordinary  conversation  are  far 
better  than  the  stereotyped  phrases  used  in  so-called 
"business  English."  Avoid  slang,  but  do  not  hesitate  to 
use  the  ordinary  colloquial  expression.   The  following 
examples  will  serve  as  a  guide  for  the  correspondent  in 
the  kind  of  writing  he  should  avoid: 

Mrs.  T.  expressed  the  opinion  that  most  of  the 
trouble  has  been  due  to  piano  having  been  delivered 
by  not  having  been  put  in  a  box,  claiming  that  the 
instrument  being  drawn  by  horses  over  a  dusty  road, 
for  a  distance  of  17  miles,  which  more  or  less 
injured  the  instrument  and  the  box  would  afford 
more  suitable  protection. 

See  how  much  better  it  would  have  been  had  the  writer 
divided  this  long  involved  sentence  into  several  small 
ones,  as  follows: 

Mrs.  T.  says  that  most  of  the  trouble  has  been  due 
to  the  manner  of  delivery.  The  piano  was  not  put 
in  a  box  and  it  was  drawn  by  horses  over  a  dusty 
road  for  a  distance  of  17  miles.  This,  she  says, 
more  or  less  injured  the  instrument. 

Another  example*. 

You  are  fully  protected  under  our  written  guarantee 
and  in  the  event  that  the  same  has  not  been  turned 
over  to  you,  Mr.  Anderson  will  be  pleased  to  do  so. 

The  words  "the  same"  refer  to  a  piano  box  mentioned  in 
a  previous  paragraph.  Without  this  explanation  the 
above  paragraph  would  have  been  entirely  meaningless. 
Another  example: 

We  are  in  receipt  of  our  Mr.  George's  recent  call 
on  you,  at  which  time  he  took  up  the  matter  regard- 
ing the  disposition  of  pianos  in  the  various  freight 
depots  awaiting  delivery,  in  which  he  informed  us 
that  you  had  promised  to  remove  all  of  these  instru- 

282 


ments  within  the  next  30  days  and  will  concentrate 
in  the  disposition  of  same  accordingly. 

The  revision  which  follows,  we  think,  is  an  improvement 
upon  this  paragraph: 

Our  Mr.  George  says  that  he  discussed  with  you 
recently  the  disposition  of  the  pianos  now  at  the 
freight  station  in  your  city.  He  also  says  that  you 
have  promised  to  remove  all  of  these  instruments 
within  the  next  30  days  and  that  you  propose  to 
concentrate  upon  the  disposition  of  them. 

In  the  following  paragraph  the  writer  complains  of  the 
customer's  letter  not  being  clear,  and  fails  himself  to 
make  his  letter  clear; 

Your  letter  is  not  quite  clear  as  to  whether  your 
arrangement  contemplates  operating  under  the  George 
Piano  Company  or  starting  out  independently.   If  so, 
whether  you  have  become  established  in  a  store  and 
are  carrying  a  stock  of  pianos  on  hand  or  intend 
selling  from  catalogs. 

The  words  "if  so"  in  the  beginning  of  the  second 
sentence  should  have  been  "if  the  latter."  There  is 
also  no  necessity  of  calling  the  reader's  attention  to 
the  fact  that  he  could  not  write  clearly.  It  may  prove 
a  boomerang. 


COURTESY 


It  is  very  important  that  the  correspondent  be  courte- 
ous. Discourtesy  injures  business  relations.   Try  to  be 
sincere  and  direct.  Under  no  circumstances  should  the 
correspondent  try  to  be  smart,  or  to  get  even  with  some 
individual  who  has  written  discourteously  to  us. 
It  is  also  important  that  the  writer  remember  that 
what  may  sound  all  right  when  spoken,  may  be  inter- 
preted entirely  different  by  the  reader.  The  following 
paragraph  might  not  have  been  meant  discourteously. 

283 


We  have  already  explained  to  you  the  manner  in 
which  your  orders  are  handled  by  us. 

If  this  sentence  is  read  aloud  in  an  angry,  positive 
tone,  the  effect  is  entirely  changed. 

Always  avoid  argument.   One  of  the  most  common  kind  of 
arguments  is  that  about  missing  letters.  This  is 
entirely  unnecessary.  When  a  customer  claims  he  has 
not  received  a  letter,  you  should  assume  that  your 
previous  letter  must  have  gone  astray  and  send  him  a 
copy  of  it.  It  saves  a  lot  of  time  all  around. 

Avoid  stock  phrases  and  the  use  of  superfluous  words 
and  expressions. 

Never  "beg";  do  not  "beg  to  acknowledge,"  or  "beg  to 
inquire." 

Never  use  "advise"  or  "state"  when  "say"  will  do. 

Never  say  "the  same"  or  "same"  when  you  mean  "it." 

Do  not  use  "trust"  when  "hope"  will  serve  better. 

Do  not  omit  the  pronoun  "I"  or  "we"  as  the  subject  of  a 
verb;  that  is,  do  not  say  "answering  your  letter  of 
May  17,  have  not  had  opportunity."  Say  "I  have  had  no 
opportunity." 

Never  thank  a  man  in  advance.  It  is  impossible. 

Do  not  close  a  letter  with  "hoping,"  "trusting,"  and  the 
like.  Never  say  "we  are,  yours  very  truly,"  and  so  on. 
Omit  "we  are."  State  your  business  concisely.  Then 
stop. 

Never  say  "the  writer";  use  the  pronoun  "I."  Be 
natural. 

Don't  say  "your  esteemed  favor";  it  is  meaningless. 
"Your  letter"  is  better. 

284 


Avoid  expressions  like  "would  say  that,"  "wish  to 
inform,"  and  "want  to  say."  You  can  write  more  clearly 
without  them. 

Don't  use  a  long  word  where  a  short  one  will  do  as  well. 
Avoid  superlatives.   Careless  use  of  "very,"  "best," 
"great,"  "remarkable,"  and  so  on,  has  weakened  many  an 
otherwise  forceful  statement. 


CONCISENESS 

Never  begin  a  letter  until  you  know  what  you  intend  to 
say.  This  will  help  prevent  the  common  mistake  of 
writing  long  and  involved  sentences. 

The  effective  letter  is  one  which  is  concise  and  to  the 
point.  Needless  words,  worthless  repetition  and  super- 
fluous details  are  the  chief  enemies  of  conciseness. 
Avoid  them.  They  add  nothing  to  the  clearness  of  a 
letter,  but  on  the  contrary,  hinder  it  being  readily 
understood.  The  ability  to  write  concisely  saves  time 
in  dictating,  saves  the  operator's  time  in  writing  and 
the  customer's  time  in  reading.  In  order  to  write 
clearly  and  concisely,  one  must  be  able  to  think  clearly 
and  directly.  The  following  examples  show  how  it  is 
possible  to  express  an  idea  clearly  and  concisely: 

DICTATED  (118  words) 

We  regret  that  we  will  be  unable  to  ship  your  car- 
load of  pianos  today  as  promised  in  our  previous 
letter.  We  are  experiencing  a  great  deal  of  trouble 
with  the  railroad  in  the  way  of  car  shortage,  and 
in  this  case  we  are  very  much  disappointed  in  not 
having  received  the  car  ordered  up  to  now. 

We,  however,  have  been  promised  definitely  by  the 
railroad  that  same  will  be  set  for  us  on  Tuesday 
morning,  September  4,  and  you  may  be  assured  that 
same  will  be  loaded  immediately  upon  arrival,  and 
forwarded.  We  shall  institute  a  tracer  on  said 
shipment  in  order  to  avoid  further  delay. 

285 


Regretting  this  unavoidable  incident,  we  beg  to 
remain  with  good  wishes. 

REVISION  (76  words) 

You,  ro  doubt,  are  experiencing  the  same  trouble 
that  we  are  having,  due  to  car  shortage.  It  seems 
to  be  everywhere.   In  spite  of  all  we  could  do,  we 
haven't  yet  received  a  car  for  the  shipment  we 
promised  in  our  last  letter  to  make. 

Today  they  have  made  us  a  definite  promise  to  have  a 
car  ready  Tuesday.   If  they  keep  their  promise  we 
will  ship  on  that  date  and  follow  shipment  with  a 
tracer. 

DICTATED  (69  words) 

Our  factories  advise  us  of  having  received  one  gold- 
plated  arm  and  one  set  of  piano  keys  bearing  your 
name  as  shipper.  Up  to  the  present  date  we  can 
locate  no  correspondence  in  our  files  covering  the 
disposition,  or  reason  for  return  of  the  above. 
Therefore,  in  order  to  facilitate  prompt  handling, 
will  you  kindly  write  us,  giving  the  above  re- 
quested instructions? 

Thanking  you  for  prompt  attention,  we  remain. 

REVISION  (19  words) 

You  shipped  us  recently  a  gold-plated  arm  and  one 
set  of  piano  keys.  Will  you  send  us  instructions? 

DICTATED  (273  words) 

We  are  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of  August  31,  with 
further  reference  to  the  adjustment  of  your  player 
piano  purchased  from  our  Joliet  store.  We  exceed- 
ingly regret  the  circumstances  which  prevented  our 
player  expert  from  adjusting  the  instrument  on  his 
previous  visit  to  Morris.  You  undoubtedly  appre- 
ciate that  this  is  the  busiest  season  of  the  year 

286 


at  our  factories  and  owing  to  the  absence  of  several 
of  our  player  men  it  was  absolutely  impossible  to 
spare  a  man  on  the  Monday  stated,  but  we  arranged 
to  send  him  the  following  day. 

We  are  pleased  to  advise,  however,  that  we  have 
made  arrangements  for  a  man  to  be  in  Morris  next 
Tuesday,  September  4.  Meanwhile  we  ask  your  kind 
indulgence,  expressing  the  hope  that  you  will  not 
be  put  to  any  inconvenience,  occasioned  by  the 
delay,  and  desire  to  assure  you  that  the  instrument 
will  be  adjusted  to  your  entire  satisfaction. 

We  are  interested  in  your  complaint  and  will  carry 
out  the  policy  of  our  company  to  make  you  a 
satisfied  customer. 

We  shall  again  take  up  the  matter  with  Mr.  Anderson 
concerning  the  piano  box,  venturing  to  state  that 
delivery  will  be  made  at  first  opportunity. 

You  undoubtedly  realize  that  this  is  an  expensive 
proposition  to  make  a  special  trip  in  a  matter  of 
this  kind  and  ask  that  you  bear  with  us  until  con- 
venient to  make  delivery. 

You  are  fully  protected  under  our  guarantee  and  in 
the  event  that  the  same  has  not  been  turned  over 
to  you,  Mr.  Anderson  will  be  pleased  to  do  so. 

Thanking  you  for  your  cooperation  and  with  kindest 
personal  regards  and  good  wishes,  we  remain, 

REVISION  (141  words) 

You  were  no  doubt  annoyed  that  our  player  expert 
came  to  Morris  on  Tuesday  instead  of  Monday,  when 
you  would  have  been  in.   The  fact  of  the  matter 
was  we  were  so  tied  up  with  appointments  for  our 
men  that  we  couldn't  make  it  and  we  assumed, 
wrongly,  as  it  happened,  that  you  would  be  in 
Tuesday, 

287 


Another  visit  will  be  made  on  you  Tuesday,  September 
4,  and  we  hope  to  be  more  successful  this  time  as  we 
most  certainly  wish  to  get  your  piano  in  good  order 
so  you  can  use  it. 

About  the  piano  box — we  are  arranging  to  have  this 
delivered  on  the  next  trip  we  make  in  your  direc- 
tion, which  we  trust  will  be  very  shortly. 

You  know,  Mrs.  Tabler,  our  guarantee  protects  you, 
and  in  addition  you  can  depend  upon  us  to  give  our 
best  service. 

In  writing  concise  letters,  bear  in  mind  that  we  must  be 
courteous.   Do  not  let  your  zeal  carry  you  to  the  point 
where  your  letters  are  curt.  Do  not  adopt  the  tele- 
graphic style  in  writing.  A  letter  can  be  so  condensed 
that  necessary  information  will  be  omitted.  Aim  to  be 
concise. 


"DON'TS"  IN  HANDLING  INQUIRIES 

Never  delay  answering  inquiries;  make  acknowledgments 
the  same  day  the  letters  are  received. 

Don't  put  off  answering  the  difficult  letters.  Run 
through  your  mail,  pick  out  the  hard  ones,  and  answer 
them  first. 

Don't  hesitate  to  get  special  information,  if  necessary. 
Be  sure  you  get  it  straight.  . 

Don't  delay  reply  because  the  information  asked  for  is 
not  immediately  obtainable.  Write  a  letter  saying  that 
the  information  is  being  looked  up,  or  that  the  inquiry 
has  been  referred  to  the  proper  person  or  department; 
then  be  sure  that  it  has  been  so  referred. 

Never  answer  an  inquiry  without  studying  the  questions 
carefully.   Lack  of  care  may  require  several  letters  for 
correction.  Also,  it  creates  a  bad  impression. 

288 


Never  write  a  letter  saying  that  you  do  not  know  what  a 
question  means.   If  there  are  several  possible  interpre- 
tations of  the  question,  answer  them  all. 

Never  start  a  letter  by  questioning  the  complainant's 
statements. 

Don't  antagonize  the  person  you  write  to.  If  you  are 
going  to  do  a  favor,  or  make  a  concession,  do  it  first. 
Argue  afterward. 

Don't  seek  our  advantage  against  the  other  man;  seek  his 
advantage  against  us.  That  stimulates  us  to  do  our 
best. 

Never  be  abrupt.  Be  courteous,  sympathetic,  and  gen- 
erous when  handling  complaints. 

Never  try  to  dodge  a  mistake  of  your  own.  Admit  it 
frankly;  then  avoid  repetition. 


HOW  TO  BEGIN  A  LETTER 

Do  not  fall  into  the  habit  of  beginning  a  letter  with 
some  stereotyped  phrase.  This  is  extremely  important 
in  sales  letters,  but  it  is  almost  as  important  in  a 
letter  for  which  the  customer  is  anxiously  waiting. 

The  practice  of  using  a  formal  opening  for  all  letters 
is  bad.  Suppose  all  the  stories  in  a  magazine  opened 
in  the  same  way — how  many  would  you  read?  Remember  you 
must  get  your  reader  interested  with  the  opener — 
therefore  make  it  interesting. 

Below  are  a  few  old-fashioned  openers: 

In  accordance  with  your  letter  of  August  28 

In  response  to  your  recent  request  for  information 

Your  valued  order  of  the  28th  received 

In  further  reference  to  your  letter  of  August  2, 

concerning 
Your  communication  bearing  no  date 

289 


We  are  in  receipt  of  your  kind  favor  of  recent  date 

and  in  reply  beg  to  state 
We  have  before  us  your  letter  of  August  28 

Always  start  your  letter  with  the  subject  that  the 
reader  is  most  interested  in.  If  necessary  to  identify 
the  date  of  the  customer's  letter,  make  this  merely 
incidental.  Do  not  waste  a  lot  of  words  in  getting  to 
the  point.  Get  to  it  at  once.  Then  you  get  your  reader 
into  the  letter  without  waste  of  time. 

Here  are  some  good  openers: 

Thank,  you  for  your  letter  of 

We  are  glad  to  learn  from  your  letter  of 

The  impression  we  get  from  your  letter  of 

We  are  sorry  to  learn 

We  know  just  how  you  felt  when  you  wrote  us 

We  feel  you  are  justified  in  your  complaint 

The  reason  you  did  not  receive 

We  are  sending  to  you  today 

WRONG  SENTENCES 

Often  a  sentence  will  be  written  which  at  first  seems 
correct,  but  after  it  is  reread,  a  double  meaning 
develops.  This  is  the  most  common  error  in  speaking. 
Sometimes  these  errors  are  costly,  but  more  often 
merely  ridiculous. 

The  material  embodied  in  its  construction,  finish, 
and  tonal  qualities  is  unexcelled. 

NOTE: — There  can  be  no  material  in  a  tonal  quality. 

Trusting  that  our  wire  has  reached  you  promptly 
with  good  wishes. 

NOTE: — Were  the  "good  wishes"  attached  to  the  wire? 

Regretting  that  we  are  not  in  a  position  to  offer 
you  our  regular  line  with  good  wishes,  we  remain. 

NOTE: — Are  they  selling  "good  wishes"? 

290 


SOME  WORDS  TO  AVOID 


DO  NOT  SAY 

WHEN  YOU  MEAN 

Awful 

Serious 

Accept 

Except 

Access 

Excess 

Affect 

Effect 

Among 

Between 

Amount 

Number 

Badly 

Very  much 

Balance 

Remainder  or  Rest 

Beg 

(Don't  use  it) 

Can 

May 

Capacity- 

Ability 

Convince 

Persuade 

Credible 

Creditable 

Execute 

Fill 

Expect 

Suspect 

Farther 

Further 

If 

Whether 

Learn 

Teach 

Lie 

Lay 

Party 

Person 

Practical 

Practicable 

Per 

By 

Proper 

Correct 

Some 

It  or  They 

Shall 

Will 

Sit 

Set 

Via 

By 

Want 

Wish  or  Desire 

Was 

Were 

Which 

That  or  Who 

Yourselves 

You 

HOW  TO 

END  A  LETTER 

Ending  a  letter  well  is  as  important  as  beginning  it 
well.  When  you  write  an  ending  that — on  the  face  of  it 
— is  formal,  you  add  useless  words  and  subtract  a  very 
valuable  quality.  Suppose  you  called  on  a  customer — 
talked  interestingly  to  him  for  a  while — got  him  all 

291 


keyed  up — and  then  said  "Anticipating  your  kind  reply  at 
an  early  date,  we  remain" — and  backed  out.  Would  you 
be  a  good  salesman?  No.   A  good  salesman  would  get  the 
name  of  the  customer  "on  the  dotted  line."  Your  letters 
should  end  with  the  end  of  the  subject  matter  unless 
you  wish  to  clinch  the  argument  by  a  final  statement  or 
question. 

Here  are  a  few  of  the  common  "closers"  found  in  our 
letters: 

With  kindest  regards,  we  are 

With  good  wishes 

With  good  wishes  for  a  large  fall  trade 

Meanwhile,  with  good  wishes  we  remain 

—and  so  on.  This  sort  of  a  sentence  attached  to  a 
Christmas  greeting  is  perhaps  all  right,  but  absolutely 
meaningless  at  the  end  of  a  letter. 

Some  other  correspondents  have  the  habit  of  using  the 
participle  ending,  such  as  "Thanking  you  for."  There  is 
one  good  reason  why  our  correspondents  should  not  use 
such  endings:   there  are  so  many  thousands  of  other 
people  doing  it  that  we  would  not  be  noticed.  We  do 
not  wish  to  do  the  useless  things  because  others  do 
them. 

Here  are  a  few  examples: 

Thanking  you  in  advance  for  your  prompt  and  favor- 
able consideration  of  the  above  and  looking  forward 
with  pleasure  to  serving  you  for  your  requirements, 
we  are 

Trusting  that  you  will  find  conditions  throughout 
Kansas  favorable  and  that  your  sojourn  in  Kansas 
City  will  not  spoil  you  for  the  balance  of  the  trip, 
venturing  the  hope  that  you  have  called  on  Mr.  W. , 
extending  to  him  our  kindest  regards,  we  remain 

Just  imagine  yourself  backing  out  of  your  customer's 
store  uttering  that  kind  of  "blarney." 

292 


Trusting  that  business  conditions  are  favorable 
in  your  locality  and  with  good  wishes,  we  beg  to 
remain 

This  writer  got  several  objectionable  things  in  one 
ending — "Trusting,"  "With  good  wishes,"  and  "We  beg  to 
remain . " 

We  have  no  occasion  to  beg  anything  of  our  customers  and 
we  do  not  like  to  have  our  correspondents  do  it  for  us. 

Trusting 
Assuring 
Thanking 
Hoping 

These  are  bad  closers — avoid  the  use  of  them. 

Here  are  some  better  closers: 

Please  decide  as  to  what  will  accommodate  you  best 
and  let  us  hear  from  you  promptly 

We  shall  expect  to  hear  from  you  by  the  20th 

If  you  decide  to  accept  our  proposition,  write  us 
at  once 

Do  you  think  you  can  afford  to  let  this  opportunity 
slip  by? 

If  there  is  any  point  in  our  letter  that  is  not 
clear,  will  you  please  write  us  again? 

We  will  notify  you  promptly  if  there  are  any  new 
developments. 


293 


STANDARD  PRACTICE  INSTRUCTIONS  FOR 
CORRESPONDENCE  DEPARTMENT 

The  duties  of  the  correspondence  department,  summed  up 
briefly,  are  to  aid  in  the  sale  of  our  product;  to  increase 
the  sale  of  supplies;  to  satisfy  complaints. 

These  are  the  three  big  outstanding  factors  that  govern  and 
control  the  correspondence  division.  It  is  a  sales  depart- 
ment first  and  above  all.   Not  only  are  the  letters 
addressed  to  a  customer  before  he  has  planned  his  order,  but 
subsequent  sales  letters  of  advice,  help,  encouragement,  and 
so  forth,  are  contributing  factors  in  our  selling  campaign. 
Hence  no  other  department  can  so  influence  the  sales  and 
ultimate  success  of  the  business  as  the  correspondence. 

HOW  THE  CUSTOMER  FEELS  ABOUT  US 

A  customer  who  goes  to  the  trouble  of  writing  us  a 
letter  has  a  perfect  right  to  expect  several  things.  He 
expects  all  his  questions  will  be  answered;  he  does  not 
want  a  perfunctory  answer,  but  a  whole-hearted,  thorough 
and  complete  one.  Most  important  of  all,  perhaps,  he 
looks  for  a  prompt  answer.  He  was  interested  to  the 
point  of  sitting  down  and  writing  us  a  long  letter;  he 
hasn't  forgotten  the  time  he  spent  in  writing  this 
letter;  it  is  on  his  mind  and  will  continue  to  be  on  his 
mind  until  our  reply  reaches  him;  and  the  quicker  our 
reply  reaches  him,  the  better  is  the  opinion  he  will 
have  of  us  and  our  business. 

PARAGRAPHS  AND  FORM  LETTERS 

Among  the  first  duties  of  the  correspondent,  or  anyone 
aspiring  to  become  a  correspondent,  is  to  become  thor- 

295 


oughly  familiar  with  the  use  and  application  of  our 
paragraphs  and  form  letters.  There  are  in  use  at 
present  over  400  paragraphs  and  about  60  form  letters. 
Revisions  are  constantly  being  made.  Notices  of  changes 
and  alterations  are  sent  through  to  the  correspondence 
and  stenographic  departments  from  time  to  time  by  the 
chief  correspondent.   Correspondents  must  mark  any 
changes  that  are  suggested,  keeping  their  sets  up  to 
date  at  all  times,  in  order  to  minimize  errors  and  mis- 
understandings . 

DUTIES  OF  STENOGRAPHERS  AND  TYPISTS 

We  require  of  stenographers  and  typists  correctness  and 
neatness  first  of  all;  then  uniformity  of  letters.   In 
order  that  letters  written  for  our  company  may  be  alike 
and  uniform,  stenographers  and  typists  will  carefully 
study  and  follow  the  instructions  in  this  manual. 
It  is  to  the  stenographers'  interest  to  immediately 
become  acquainted  with  the  rules  governing  the  steno- 
graphic department,  because  infractions  of  the  rules 
governing  the  ways  of  writihg  our  letters  will  be 
charged  against  the  bonus,  deductions  being  made  for 
errors,  erasures,  irregularities  of  salutations,  clos- 
ing, misspelling,  and  so  on. 

ERASURES 

Nothing  detracts  so  much  from  the  general  appearance  of 
a  letter  as  erasures.  The  world's  speediest  operators 
turn  out  work  practically  free  from  erasures,  and  it  is 
just  as  easy  to  strike  the  right  key  as  the  wrong  one. 
Anything  in  a  letter  that  detracts  from  its  neatness 
leaves  a  bad  impression.   And  nothing  influences  a  cus- 
tomer or  a  prospective  customer  against  us  so  much  as  a 
letter  having  erasures,  especially  if  they  are  untidily 
made. 

TYPOGRAPHICAL  ERRORS 

Typographical  errors  include  misspelled  words,  misplaced 
and  incorrect  punctuation,  and  so  on.   As  fully  90%  of 

296 


the  letters  written  by  the  stenographic  department  are 
composed  of  form  letters  or  paragraphs,  there  should  be 
no  excuse  for  typographical  errors  of  any  kind.  Our 
standard  paragraphs  are  correctly  spelled  and  punctuated 
and  no  deviation  from  them  is  allowed.  A  misspelled 
word  in  a  paragraph  can  show  only  one  thing — careless- 
ness— and  suitable  deductions  will  be  made  for  such 
errors.  The  manager  of  the  stenographic  department 
expects  to  keep  every  stenographer  and  typist  supplied 
with  a  clean,  legible  set  of  paragraphs.  Since  they  are 
in  constant  use,  however,  certain  paragraphs  are  bound 
to  become  frayed,  soiled,  and  illegible,  and  the  typist 
must  report  such  conditions  if  they  exist  in  her  par- 
ticular paragraph  book.  New  paragraphs  can  easily  be 
obtained  from  the  duplicator  department  and  it  requires 
merely  a  report  from  the  stenographer  to  the  department 
manager  to  secure  them. 

THE  TYPEWRITERS 

The  same  caution  applies  to  the  typewriters.  If  there 
is  any  irregularity  in  the  machine,  if  it  appears  out  of 
order,  if  the  spacer  does  not  work  perfectly,  the  keys 
jumble,  the  alignment  seems  irregular,  the  ribbon  does 
not  feed  properly,  or  if  there  is  anything  else  out  of 
order,  it  must  be  reported  promptly  to  the  department 
manager. 

SALUTATIONS 

If  the  one  addressed  is  a  man,  the  salutation  should  be 
"Dear  Sir";  if  a  woman,  the  salutation  should  be  "Dear 
Madam."  If  it  is  impossible  to  determine  whether  the 
addressee  is  a  man  or  a  woman,  the  salutation  should  be 
"Dear  Friend."  The  heading  of  every  letter  should  be 
made  according  to  this  form: 

Mr.  John  Jones 
148  Jenkins  St. 
Kenosha,  Wis. 

Dear  Sir: 

297 


PARAGRAPHING 

Every  paragraph  should  be  started  at  Figure  20  on  the 
standard  scale,  or  10  spaces  from  the  left-hand  margin 
of  the  letter. 

A  carbon  copy  of  every  dictated  letter  is  made  and 
retained  in  our  files.  Stenographers  must  be  careful 
to  keep  their  supply  of  carbon  paper  in  good  order.  All 
carbon  copies  must  be  legible  and  any  changes  made  on 
the  original  letter  must  also  be  made  on  the  carbon 
copy. 

IDENTIFYING  LETTERS 

Stenographers  and  typists  will  always  put  in  the  lower 
left-hand  corner  of  the  letter  their  own  initials  and 
also  the  number  of  the  correspondent  marking  the  letter. 
Thus,  if  correspondent  No.  15  has  marked  the  letter  and 
stenographer  ML  has  written  it,  the  identification  marks 
in  the  lower  left-hand  corner  of  the  letter  will  read 

ML-15 

The  same  applies  to  the  dictated  mail,  except  that  the 
dictator's  initials  are  used  instead  of  a  number,  and 
placed  first;  thus  AR-ML  means  that  AR  dictated  and  ML 
transcribed  and  wrote  the  letter. 

ENCLOSURES  ■ 

Immediately  below  the  correspondent's  number  and  the 
typist's  initials,  the  enclosures  are  marked.  As 
checkers  make  all  the  enclosures  from  these  directions, 
it  necessarily  follows  that  if  typists  fail  to  indicate 
the  enclosures,  the  enclosures  will  not  be  made.  This 
will  be  counted  as  an  error  against  the  typist. 

STOCK  RECORDS 

All  stock,  stationery,  printed  booklets,  circulars, 
order  blanks,  and  so  forth,  are  given  a  symbol  number, 
which  is  placed  somewhere  in  ^in  inconspicuous  place  on 


each  piece  of  printed  matter  when  it  is  practical  to  do 
so.  The  symbol  number  is  entered  in  the  stock  record 
book,  which  is  a  looseleaf  binder;  when  a  new  piece  of 
printed  matter  is  given  a  symbol,  it  is  filed  alpha- 
betically in  the  book.  Besides  the  symbol  number  a 
short  explanation  of  its  use  and  purpose  is  given  on  the 
same  page,  also  the  date  on  which  the  form  was  last  or- 
dered or  printed,  the  amount,  and  so  on.   As  all  orders 
for  supplies  and  stationery  pass  through  the  planning 
department,  deductions  are  made.   It  is  the  duty  of  the 
planning  department  to  keep  a  careful  record  of  all  sup- 
plies and  as  soon  as  a  previously  determined  "low  level" 
has  been  reached,  a  report  must  be  made  so  that  a  new 
supply  may  be  ordered. 

The  heads  of  departments  making  orders  for  supplies, 
stationery,  and  so  forth,  submit  their  orders  to  the 
planning  department  once  a  day.   After  the  entry  has 
been  made  in  the  stock-record  book,  the  planning  depart- 
ment sends  the  orders  to  the  stock  room  to  be  filled. 

HANDLING  INVOICES  AND  STATEMENTS 

All  invoices  must  be  checked  and  put  through  promptly. 
If  our  invoices  are  not  paid  when  they  are  due,  it  hurts 
our  credit  standing,  and  we  are  likely  to  lose  the  dis- 
count for  payment  within  a  certain  time  unless  the 
invoices  are  sent  through  to  the  cashier  in  time  to  pay 
them  before  the  discount  date. 

Before  an  invoice  is  passed,  it  is  necessary  for  us  to 
have  a  proper  record  of  the  goods  received  and  of  their 
satisfactory  quality.   We  should  also  keep  a  record  of 
invoices  passed  so  that  we  will  not  pass  two  invoices 
for  the  same  goods. 

The  following  routine  is  established  for  handling  and 
checking  all  invoices,  and  must  be  observed  by  everyone 
concerned: 

1.  Since  the  purchasing  department  alone  is  author- 
ized to  buy  goods,  all  invoices  received  are  sent  to 

299 


that  department  direct  from  the  mail-opening  depart- 
ment.  Sometimes  invoices  are  delivered  with  the 
goods  or  sent  in  by  messenger,  in  which  case  also 
they  must  be  sent  direct  to  the  purchasing  depart- 
ment and  not  to  any  individual  in  the  office,  unless 
the  bill  is  made  out  to  an  individual  and  not  to 
the  firm. 

2.  The  purchasing  department  should,  of  course, 
have  a  purchase  record  for  checking  every  invoice 
received. 

3.  If  the  purchasing  department  has  not  the  pur- 
chase record  with  which  to  check  the  invoice,  it 
will  hold  the  invoice  and  ask  the  department,  or  the 
individual  who  may  have  bought  the  goods,  for  a 
requisition.   In  such  cases,  the  purchasing  depart- 
ment will  also  suggest  that  in  the  future  no  goods 
are  to  be  ordered  for  the  firm  except  through  the 
purchasing  department.   Where  it  is  necessary,  the 
purchasing  department  should  also  instruct  dealers 
not  to  deliver  goods  except  on  a  regular  order. 
This  means  that  the  purchasing  department  will  hold 
all  unchecked  invoices  until  they  are  checked,  and 
so  far  as  possible  will  be  responsible  for  either 
checking  them  from  its  own  records,  or  getting  the 
proper  information  about  invoices  which  are  not 
recorded. 

4.  The  purchasing  department  should  not  allow  any 
unchecked  invoices  to  go  out  of  its  department.   If 
a  case  should  arise  where  a  memorandum  cannot  be 
sent,  and  it  is  necessary  for  the  invoice  to  be  sent 
out  of  the  department,  a  proper  record  must  be  kept 
and  followed  up  in  two  days. 

5.  The  purchasing  department  will  check  the  in- 
voices against  the  purchase  record  in  this  way: 

(1)  Each  invoice  must  be  made  self-explanatory 
so  that  it  can  be  properly  charged.  Wherever 
possible  a  sample  of  the  goods  bought  should  be 

300 


attached  to  the  invoice  by  the  purchasing 
department. 

(2)  Put  the  bill  stamp  on  the  invoice. 

(3)  Check  the  bill  stamp  as  "ordered,"  "re- 
ceived," "quality  and  price,"  "terms,"  and 
"charged  to."  The  accounting  department  cannot 
handle  the  invoice  until  it  has  been  so  checked. 

6.  The  purchasing  department  must  date  the  invoices 
and  initial  them. 

7.  From  the  purchasing  department  the  invoices  go 
to  the  accounting  department,  where  all  extensions 
and  additions  are  verified,  the  discount  deducted  and 
the  charge  number  checked  to  see  that  it  is  correct. 

8.  The  accounting  department  then  passes  the  in- 
voices to  the  proper  individuals  for  approval,  and 
is  held  responsible  for  the  prompt  return  of  all  in- 
voices, keeping  necessary  memoranda  to  see  that  all 
bills  distributed  for  approval  are  returned.   It  is 
imperative  that  this  policy  be  followed. 

9.  In  making  this  distribution  the  schedule  given 
on  the  next  page  is  to  be  used. 

10.  The  individuals  approving  invoices  for  payment 
must  date  and  initial  them. 

11.  After  the  invoices  have  been  approved  and  re- 
turned, the  accounting  department  detaches  and  de- 
stroys the  samples  attached  to  the  bills,  or  if  the 
samples  are  valuable  sends  them  to  the  supply  room. 
All  bills  from  the  same  firm  are  then  fastened  to- 
p:ether  and  a  summary  attached. 

12.  After  the  accounting  department  has  registered 
the  invoices  on  the  invoice  register,  they  are  sent 
to  the  auditor  for  final  approval  and  then  to  the 
cashier  for  payment. 

301 


A  SCHEDULE  FOR  THE  APPROVAL  OF  INVOICES  AND  VOUCHERS 

All  invoices  and  vouchers  (including  branches  and  factories) 
must  be  approved  in  accordance  with  the  following  schedule: 

FOR  THE  FOLLOWING   FOR  AMOUNTS  FOR  AMOUNTS  FOR  AMOUNTS 
DEPARTMENTS         UP  TO  $50     FROM  $50    OVER  $200 

to  $200 
NEW  YORK  OFFICE 

Selling  R.E.G.  or  L.P.    J.K.F.   R.H  D.  or  S.A.D. 

Advertising       R.M.T.  W.H.A.   R.H.D.  or   S.A.D. 

Administrative 

General  Office  A.W.  or  S.B.H.  J.K.F.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 
Accounting  B.P.R.  or  S.B.H.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 
Credit  and 

Collection    M.C.  or  S.B.H.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Stock  and 

Shipping     J.O.  J.K.F.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Repair  and 

Exchange      E.W.  J.K.F.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

HOME  OFFICE 

Selling  R.M.T.  W.H.A.   R.H.D  or  S.A.D. 

Advertising  R.M.T.  W.H.A.   R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 
Administrative 

General  Office  A.W.  or  S.B.H.  J.K.F.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Accounting  B.P.R.  or  S.B.H.         R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Credit  and 

Collection  M.C.  or  S.B.H.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Stock  and 

Shipping  A.R.  A.R.    R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

Factory  Bills  M.C.O.  or  F.P.K.  M.C.O.  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D. 

All  vouchers  must  be  approved  before  being  registered.   When 
necessary  the  final  approval  of  R.H.D.  or  S.A.D  may  be  ob- 
tained after  registry  or  payment.  The  amount  limits  apply 
to  individual  items  and  not  to  group  totals.  All  sach  indi- 
vidual items  must  be  approved  before  being  grouped. 

All  vouchers  and  invoices  must  be  checked  by  the  auditor 
before  payment.  This  rule  does  not  apply  to  petty  cash 
vouchers  for  amounts  under  $5. 

302 


13.  The  invoices  for  all  accounts  settled  monthly 
are  held  in  the  accounting  department  until  the  end 
of  the  month,  when  the  invoices  for  the  entire  month 
are  entered  on  the  register  at  the  same  time,  as  one 
item. 

14.  The  cashier  will  take  care  of  the  payment  of 
the  invoices  sent  her,  mark  them  with  the  "PAID" 
stamp  after  checks  are  drawn,  and  send  them  through 
to  the  file.  The  file  clerk  must  be  careful  not  to 
file  any  invoices  unless  they  bear  the  "PAID"  stamp. 

15.  All  invoices  must  go  through  the  above  routine 
with  as  much  dispatch  as  possible.  The  purchasing 
department  should  pass  the  invoices  through  in  about 
two  days  and  they  should  not  be  held  by  individuals 
longer  than  one  day.   If  the  accounting  department 
finds  that  invoices  are  held  up  unduly  by  an  indi- 
vidual, this  fact  should  be  reported  to  the  auditor. 

INVOICES  NOT  RECEIVED 

When  the  purchasing  department  has  a  receiving  record 
for  goods  for  which  it  has  no  invoice,  it  will  write  for 
the  invoice  to  the  firm  sending  the  goods.  If  an  in- 
voice is  received  and  the  purchasing  department  has  no 
record  of  the  receipt  of  the  goods,  it  will  write  for  an 
explanation  to  the  firm  sending  the  invoice. 

STATEMENTS 

All  statements  are  sent  direct  to  the  cashier.  Any 
missing  invoices  which  the  cashier  is  not  holding  should 
be  inquired  for  in  the  purchasing  department,  because 
this  is  the  only  department  which  may  hold  any  unchecked 
invoices  except  those  on  the  way  from  the  purchasing 
department  to  the  cashier.   If  the  purchasing  department 
is  not  holding  any  of  the  unchecked  invoices  mentioned 
on  the  statement,  it  will  return  the  statement  to  the 
cashier  with  a  note  as  to  whether  or  not  it  checked  any 
bills  corresponding  with  the  statement  items,  and  if  so, 
the  date  such  bills  were  checked. 

303 


ASKING  FOR  DUPLICATE  INVOICES 

Duplicate  invoices  should  be  written  for  only  when  abso- 
lutely necessary.   If  possible,  we  want  always  to  find 
the  original  bill;  if  it  is  necessary  to  write  for  the 
duplicate  bills,  some  part  of  this  system  of  handling 
and  checking  the  invoices  is  not  operating  according  to 
schedule. 

The  accounting  department  is  to  see  that  the  instruc- 
tions here  outlined  for  handling  invoices  shall  be 
carried  out  in  all  respects. 


MAILING  DEPARTMENT 

OUTGOING  MAIL 

All  outgoing  mail  is  to  be  delivered  to  the  mailing 
department  and  the  mail  clerk  must  see  that  the  letters 
are  enclosed  in  the  proper  envelops,  sealed,  stamped, 
and  forwarded  to  the  post  office. 

SAVING  POSTAGE 

In  order  to  reduce  the  amount  of  postage  to  a  minimum, 
this  department  has  a  classifier  in  which  all  the  let- 
ters addressed  to  the  same  person  are  kept  together 
during  the  day  and  mailed  in  one  envelop  at  the  close  of 
the  day's  business. 

REQUISITIONS  FOR  STAMPS 

When  additional  stamps  or  stamped  envelops  are  required, 
the  mailing  clerk  will  fill  out  a  form  promptly  and  send 
it  to  the  treasurer's  department.   Ordsr  in  small  quan- 
tities and  as  often  as  necessary;  at  no  time  shall  a 
large  stock  of  stamps  be  kept  in  the  division. 

HOW  TO  FOLD  LETTERS 

In  folding  a  letter  to  go  into  an  ordinary  envelop,  do 
not  fold  the  bottom  of  the  sheet  even  with  the  top,  but 

304 


fold  it  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  below  the  top.   This 
makes  it  much  easier  to  open  the  letter. 

The  exact  time  of  the  departure  of  mail  trains  must,  of 
course,  be  known.  The  postal  rules  also  should  be  thor- 
oughly understood,  especially  with  respect  to  the  clas- 
sifications of  mail  matter  and  rates  of  postage,  both 
domestic  and  foreign. 

Acknowledgments  of  general  orders  and  notices  of  ship- 
ments should  not  be  mailed  unless  received  from  the 
stenographic  department  in  specially  marked  envelop?. 

WINDOW  ENVELOPS 

Window  envelops  should  be  used  wherever  possible.  For 
enclosing,  carefully  follow  the  instructions  shown  on 
the  following  page. 

The  mail  clerk  is  absolutely  forbidden  to  sell  postage 
stamps  or  stamped  envelops  to  the  employees.  These  can 
be  purchased  in  the  treasurer's  department  during  the 
regular  office  hours. 

USE  OF  SPECIAL  MAILING  PERMITS 

Where  two  thousand  or  more  identical  pieces  of  our 
literature  are  to  be  mailed,  a  special  permit  will  be 
used  instead  of  postage  stamps.  The  permit  number  and 
the  amount  of  postage  are  to  be  stamped  on  each  piece, 
and  the  total  amount  paid  by  voucher. 

HOURS  OF  THE  MAIL  CLERK 

The  mail  clerk  will  report  for  duty  at  8:45  a.m.  except 
one  day  each  week,  when  she  reports  at  1  p.m.  She  will 
remain  each  evening  until  all  the  mail  has  been  sealed, 
stamped  and  forwarded  to  the  post  office.  From  5 
o'clock  until  the  mail  is  all  put  up,  she  has  the  assis- 
tance of  one  office  boy.  On  Saturday  afternoon  the  mail 
clerk  remains  until  all  the  mail  has  been  sent  to  the 
post  office.  Correspondents  or  stenographers  working 

305 


INSTRUCTIONS  FOR  FOLDING 
WINDOW  ENVELOPS 


Fold  bottom  over  to  top  of  salutation 
as  shown  in  Figure  1;  this  marks  line 
where  second  fold  is  to  be  made. 

Pick  up  letter  as  described  by  Figure 
2,  holding  firmly  with  left  hand  while 
making  fold  with  right,  moving  hand 
from  left  to  right  as  indicated  by  arrow 
in  Figure  3. 

Hold  letter  in  same  position  with 
left  hand  while  grasping  under  edge  with 
right  (see  Figure  4).  Then  turn  address 
side  down  preparatory  to  placing  in 
envelop. 

Envelops  should  be  placed  face  down- 
ward alongside  of  pile  of  letters,  with 
flaps  next  to  letters  as  shown  in  illustra- 
tions.    Insert  enclosure  as  in  Figure  5. 


FIGURE  1 


FIGURE  2 


FIGURE  3 


FIGURE  4 


FIGURE  5 


306 


Saturday  afternoons  will  notify  the  floor  office  boy  or 
the  mail  clerk  when  the  mail  is  all  in,  so  that  the  mail 
clerk  may  be  relieved  and  not  unnecessarily  detained. 
His  time  is  as  valuable  to  him  as  yours  is  to  you. 


STATIONERY  AND  SUPPLIES 

\   requisition  for  ordinary  stationery  or  office  supplies 
should  not  exceed  a  month's  requirements.   If  an  excess 
requisition  comes  in,  the  stationery  department  should 
make  an  inquiry  or  else  reduce  the  quantity  ordered. 
In  filling  requisitions,  the  stationery  department  has 
the  privilege  of  changing  the  quantities  ordered,  if 
necessary  to  conform  to  the  size  of  the  original  pad  or 
package.  Requisitions  should  be  confined  to  our  stand- 
ard supplies.  Special  brands  are  expensive  and  unneces- 
sary. We  now  have  our  standards  well  established  and 
materials  suitable  for  the  work  in  hjand  are  available  at 
all  times. 


CHANGING  OLD  FORMS  OR  MAKING  NEW  ONES 

A  request  to  change  an  existing  form  or  to  print  a  new 
one  should  be  made  to  the  stationery  purchaser  after  it 
has  been  approved  by  the  head  of  the  department.   This 
request  shokild  be  attached  to  a  copy  of  the  form  de- 
sired, and  the  stationery  purchaser  should  be  informed 
what  forms,  if  any,  will  be  replaced,  and  for  what  the 
new  form  is  to  be  used,  whether  it  is  for  a  temporary 
record,  and  whether  it  is  to  be  written  on  with  ink, 
lead  pencil,  or  typewriter.  The  stationery  purchaser 
will  assign  a  new  form  number,  if  necessary,  and  pass 
the  request  to  the  assistant  to  the  general  manager  for 
his  approval. 

The  following  questions  should  be  carefully  considered 
when  requesting  a  new  form:   Is  the  form  contemplated 
absolutely  necessary?  Is  the  expense  involved  in  print- 
ing and  in  using  justified  by  the  value  of  the  informa- 
tion given?  Will  the  result  secured  be  actually 
utilized? 


KEEPING  SUFFICIENT  SUPPLIES  ON  HAND 

The  stationery  department  will  keep  all  forms  in  stock 
in  sufficient  quantity  to  allow  the  time  necessary  for 
their  replacement,  and  each  department  will  be  notified 
promptly  when  the  minimum  quantity  on  any  form  has  been 
reached.  It  is  only  necessary  for  each  department  t'^ 
fill  in  this  form  and  return  it  to  the  stationery  de- 
partment as  soon  as  possible,  to  guard  against  tha  '"oriii 
being  exhausted. 


603 


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